Hello
by Lucinders
Summary: Cristina Yang has returned to Seattle with her son in tow. Now world famous, she is the winner of the two Harper Avery awards. She was invited to demonstrate the Yang surgical method at Seattle Pres. She has not been in Seattle in four years. Her only ally in Seattle is her friend, Alex Karev, who is the boy's godfather. Other than Alex, she has no plans to contact anyone else.
1. Chapter 1 Xander

Dr. Cristina Yang paced the floor of her hotel room. The little boy on the floor was oblivious to his mother's pacing, since he was busy with his crayons and his coloring book.

"Where are you, Alex Karev?" she said, as she looked at her watch. "I am going to be so late."

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. She quickly whipped open the door. "Alex Karev, where have you been?"

"I mean, is that a way to greet one of your oldest friends, Cristina Yang?" he said. The two old friends gave each other a hug. The little boy got up from the floor and ran and hugged Alex's legs.

"Hey there, Xander. How are you?" Alex said. He swung the boy up to lift him up.

The little boy giggled and said, "Uncle Alex." Cristina handed a bag full of Xander's things.

"He's got toys and snacks in there," Cristina said. "He has had his breakfast and you can buy him his lunch. Something hot, good and nutritious. He likes apple juice, so you can buy that for him."

"Cristina, I can handle a three year old boy," Alex said. "You are just lucky that today is my day off, so I could take care of him. Oh, one thing, I have to go in and check on one of my patients. So there is a possibility that you-know-who may see him."

"Don't worry. He wouldn't know who Xander is," Cristina said. "It will be okay."

"Okay, whatever you say. You knock them dead at Seattle Pres," Alex said, as he and the little boy left. Cristina watched them go down the corridor, singing and waving their hands in the air. Alex was such a good friend, she thought.

She pulled on her jacket and picked up her handbag and headed down to the lobby of her hotel. The doorman called her a cab and she told him to go to Seattle Pres. She had been invited by the administrators of that hospital to demonstrate the Yang method, which had won her the second of her Harper Avery awards.

She looked out of the window of her cab, taking in all of the buildings of the city where she had once lived. She had not been here in four years.

* * *

_**Four years ago**_

When she won her first Harper Avery award and had been given the offer by Columbia University of the opportunity not only to run her own research lab which was funded at $60 million, she felt she could not refuse. She would also be given the position of Assistant head of cardio surgery, a position she could fill until their current head of cardio surgery was ready to retire and she would be put in his place.

Owen had told her that she should take the position – there was nothing that Grey Sloan could give her that was even remotely equal to that. She said that she would think about it.

The day that she finally made her mind to go to New York, she had found Owen in the on-call room, taking a rest. Things have been strained between the two of them, especially now that he was engaged to Emma and she was pregnant with his child.

She opened the door to the on-call room. He was lying on the bed without his scrub shirt on. He sat up, as soon as the door was opened.

"Hey," she said. "I just wanted to tell you that I am going to accept Columbia's offer," she said, softly. "There isn't much for me, here anymore." He knew she was referring to his impending marriage to Emma and their child plus her relationship with Meredith had been on a downslide, for quite a while.

"I think it is best. We can't offer you what they are offering. You are going to do great things, Cristina. You are so brilliant," he said. "I wish you the very best."

"Thank you," she said. "I am going to leave tomorrow."

"Can I get a goodbye hug?" he asked. She reluctantly came to him. They were so magnetically drawn together that they had avoided touching each other. One touch and they knew that they would be a goner. Still, he took her into his arms and hugged her. She wrapped her arms around his bare torso.

He buried his face into her curls. And then, when he raised his head, their lips met and then their hands found their way under each other's scrubs. And then, they were on the bed, naked and making love to one another. They both knew that it was morally wrong. After all, he was engaged to another woman but there was something so right about it. Their chemistry was too intense. When they were together, it was like nobody else mattered.

After they made love over and over again, they lay there in silence. "I am going to miss you very much," he finally said, as he pulled her closer together. "I cannot love another person the way I have loved you. You are my soulmate."

She knew that it was true but they were broken because they had both wanted different things. They hugged each other, until it was time for her to go. With one last kiss, they said goodbye.

When she had gone to Columbia, she was really excited. She was getting to run her own lab the way that she wanted. She was also getting to pick and choose what surgeries she would like to do. She didn't have to do anything mundane anymore. She was only up for the exciting and the most challenging surgeries. The hospital had found her a new apartment on Central Park West. She loved it there, since she was overlooking the park. It was a hectic first three months at Columbia. There was so much to do. She hardly got any rest because it was all go-go-go.

It was during her 14th week there in New York that she woke up feeling a little queasy. "I cannot be coming down with the flu," she thought. There was too much still to be done. She figured she would head it off by starting with the medicines early. She thought she would just drop it on one of the doctors at work. She chose to go to see Dr. Shelley. She liked the older woman with the horn-rimmed glasses and the grey hair.

"Alright, so you think you're coming down with the cold," Dr Shelley said. "When was your last checkup, Dr. Yang?"

"It has been a while. You know doctors make the worst patients," Cristina said, with a laugh.

"So we will take blood and urine," the doctor said. "So how have you settled down in New York?"

"Doing really well, I think," Cristina replied. "The lab is fully operational and I also have had some really great surgeries."

"Great," the doctor said, as she drew two vials of blood from Cristina. She also told Cristina to go to the bathroom and return with a urine sample. When she returned, the doctor took out a pregnancy test to test the urine.

"I am not pregnant," Cristina said. "I have not had any pregnancy symptoms."

"So when was your last period?" Dr. Shelley asked. "I am looking at your intake sheet and it says that your last menstrual period was over three months ago. Maybe, pregnancy might be a reason for your queasiness."

"That's because my periods have been irregular. Plus the stress of the move and the establishment of the lab may have also factored into it," Cristina said. "I am really supposed to take some pills to regulate it but I really haven't had the time to do this."

"Hmm," the doctor said. "Your pregnancy test should be ready by now." There was no mistaking the positive sign on the stick. "Well, it looks like you are pregnant."

"No!" Cristina said. "That cannot be. My stomach isn't even getting bigger." Well, that was somewhat not true. There was a slight roundness to her belly but she had attributed it to that the junk food she had been eating, since she really hadn't had time to get any really good food.

"I haven't even had any morning sickness," she declared. She remembered her first pregnancy with Burke's child before she had the miscarriage. She had been so ill with morning sickness that she could almost not function.

"Well, we will see," Dr. Shelley said, as she wheeled across the ultrasound machine. "Just lay back and let me put this gel on you." Cristina did as she was told and as the doctor ran the wand over her stomach, it was no mistaking that someone had taken up residence in her uterus.

"Ah, there we have it," Dr. Shelley said, almost triumphantly. "You are definitely pregnant. That is a very clear looking fetus. I think you are about 14 weeks. You are already past your first trimester."

Cristina knew that was totally right. The fetus had to be about 14 weeks. It was 14 weeks ago that she and Owen had their last goodbye in the on-call room. She just couldn't speak as Dr Shelley continued on and on about her lack of prenatal care in the first few months and that she needed to get ready.

After she left Dr Shelley's office, she made up her mind that she was not going to tell Owen about the pregnancy. After all, he was already married to Emma and they just had a baby girl. It was not going to be his problem.

She thought long and hard about what she was going to do about the baby, when it arrived. She figured it might be best to put it up for adoption. After all, she didn't have time for a baby in her life. Yes, that was what she was going to do.

The only person she told about the pregnancy was Alex. Alex was now her health proxy. Since she was his health proxy, she decided to replace Meredith as health proxy and named Alex instead.

"So are you going to tell him?" Alex asked, when she told him about the pregnancy.

"No," she said. "I don't want to intrude in his life. He's already married. He's probably happy. After all, he got the kid he always wanted. Besides, how is he going to explain about a baby who is younger than his own child?"

"So what are you going to do, when the baby is born?" he asked.

"I am seriously thinking of putting it up for adoption," she said.

"Wow, Cristina, you really could do that to your own kid? It's not like you are a teenager with no means," he said. "You are a noted cardiothoracic surgeon, youngest winner of the Harper Avery award."

"Well, it's just a thought I had for the moment," Cristina said. "When it is time, can you come to New York for when the baby is born? I mean you are my health proxy and if anything goes wrong and I bleed out and become brain dead or anything like that, I would need you to be here."

"Sure, I will make sure that I am free and I will be there," Alex said. And so he was.

When the baby was born and Cristina saw his beautiful face with his curly hair, she realized how hard it was for mothers to give up their babies for adoption. Alex was right. She wasn't some penniless teenager. It was never about her not loving her own child. She just hadn't wanted any. As she had told Owen, of course, she could love her baby but she just didn't want any. She ran her finger on his smooth, perfect face.

Alex stared at her. He had never imagined Cristina Yang would be looking so lovingly at her own child.

"So what are we going to do?" he said. He wanted to know whether she was still going to put up the baby for adoption.

"We are going to name him," Cristina said. Alex chuckled. If she was going to name him, then it meant that she was going to keep him.

"What's his name?" Alex asked.

"Alexander seems to be a great name," Cristina said. Alex was very touched. "You've been my rock throughout this pregnancy. I thought it was fitting. We will call him Xander because you are Alex and we don't want to get the two of you mixed up."

"Xander – that's a good name. Sounds like a stud," Alex said, laughing.

"Of course, you will be his godfather – whatever that means," Cristina said. She was the godmother of Zola Shepherd and Sofia Torres but she never really knew what that meant. She sent them presents every birthday and Christmas but she never really contacted the children.

"Are you going to tell him?" Alex asked. Cristina firmly shook her head.

"But I am going to give Xander, Owen's name as his middle name. Alexander Owen Yang," Cristina said. "He should have something of his father, even though they will never know about each other." Alex agreed.

* * *

_**Present Day**_

As Cristina headed to Seattle Pres, Alex headed to Grey Sloan Memorial to check on one of his patients. Even though someone had been assigned to follow up on his patient, Alex still wanted to check in on the young patient, even though it was his day off. After checking in on the patient, he and Xander sat in the lobby, where the little boy was drinking from an apple juice box.

"How you doing there, Xander?" Alex asked. The little boy gave him a thumbs-up, which made Alex laugh.

It was how Owen and his daughter, Jordan, saw Alex and Xander in the lobby. He wondered if Alex was with a young patient, given that the kid had an Asian look about him. As he drew closer, he could tell that the boy was actually only half-Asian. In fact, the kid reminded him of someone, especially with all of that dark curly hair and full lips. But it couldn't be, he thought. His heart ached when he remembered the child he could have had with Cristina.

"Hey, Alex, who is this little chap with you?" Owen asked.

Alex looked a little nervous but he smoothly said, "Just my godson. His name is Xander. He is named after me, Alexander but we call him Xander. He just turned three."

Owen looked curiously at the child. "Do I know his parents?" he asked.

"No," Alex said, a little stiffly. He hated lying to Owen but he knew he had to keep Cristina's secret. "We're just having a day together on my day off. Just came in to check one of my post-ops, this morning. Then Xander and I are going to have a day at the Woodland Zoo and then to Pike Place Market, where we are going to get some food. After that, I am going to drop him off at his mom's."

"Sounds like a wonderful day. Just going to drop off Jordan here to daycare," Owen said, nodding at his blonde hair, blue-eyed daughter, who was going to be four in a couple of months. "Great to meet you, Xander."

The curly haired boy looked up and smiled. "Yup," he said. It was the way he smiled that Owen saw another person's face.

As he and Jordan walked away, he couldn't help but think of his former wife, the woman who was the love of his life. He looked back at Alex and Xander. Alex had scooped up the little boy in his arms and they were headed out the hospital doors. He could see the little boy's face above Alex's shoulders. He saw Owen looking at him. Xander smiled and waved.

* * *

**A/N Please leave your thoughts and comments. I don't think this will be a long story. Maybe a couple of chapters. I would appreciate to hear what you guys think since this is new.**


	2. Chapter 2 She is Here

As Cristina stepped into the lobby of Seattle Presbyterian Hospital, the Chief of Surgery was waiting for her. He came to her, immediately.

"Dr. Yang, I am Dr. Chet Walters," the man said. He was tall, in his fifties and graying at the temples. "We spoke on the phone."

"Yes, we have. Dr. Walters, I am so pleased to meet you," she told him. "But you can call me Cristina. There is no need for us to be so formal here."

"Yes, as long as you call me Chet," he said. "We were so pleased that you agreed to demonstrate the Yang method, here. Everyone is extremely excited, especially the residents and interns. They are going to be in the presence of a real genius." He seemed pretty excited himself, the way his eyes gleamed.

"I hope I won't disappoint," Cristina said. "I hope you can introduce me to the patient, now. I think I need to get to know him before we do this, tomorrow."

"Well, of course, there is the press conference first, today," Dr. Walters said.

"Press conference?" she repeated in alarm. She didn't know that they had scheduled a press conference. Now, everyone from Grey Sloan would now know that she was in Seattle.

"Yes, yes," Dr. Walters said. He looked at his watch. "We're starting in about half an hour. I think the press have already started gathering in our conference room." He sensed the anxiety within her.

"I am sorry. I thought you knew we were going to have a press conference. After all, it is not every day that we have a two-time Harper Avery award winner in our midst. Seattle Pres has to shout it to the roofs, so everyone knows that you are here. Glad that you are here and not on your old stomping ground at Grey Sloan," he continued.

"Oh, it's alright. I just don't know if I look presentable," she said, taking a look at her dark grey suit.

"You look fine," Walters said. "A lot better than me. Do you need to go to the restroom and freshen up before the news conference?"

"Yes, thank you. Just direct me," she said. He took her to the nearest ladies' room. She used the toilet and washed her hands. She stared at herself in the mirror. She was going to be so busted. She had thought that she was going to make it out of Seattle with no one but Alex knowing that she had been there. The press conference was now going to make it impossible to do so. But then again, she reasoned, they would probably be so busy with their surgeries that no one would probably see it on the news.

When she came out of the restroom, Dr. Walters was waiting for her. "Thank you for waiting," she said. "There is one favor that I would like to ask."

"Anything, Cristina," Walters said. He was willing to grant her anything that was within his power.

"My son, Xander, accompanied me to Seattle. He is with a friend, today. I was wondering whether he could be placed in the hospital's day care while I am here for a couple of days. He's three years old," she said.

"Certainly, that could be arranged," Dr. Walters said, as he led her to the conference room where the press conference was being held. As they entered, the reporters looked excitedly in her direction and the photographers started to take pictures. Dr. Walter led her to a seat on the stage, while Dr. Walters took his place in front of the microphone.

As he spoke, Cristina looked around at all of the press there. Yes, this was certainly going to make the news.

* * *

After the press conference, Cristina met with the patient, Brantley Stokes. He was pleased that he had been chosen to be operated on by this world-famous surgeon. Cristina also had a meeting with Brantley's surgeon at Seattle Pres, Dr. George Peterson, who was greatly excited to be in the presence of one of the world's greatest. She told him that she expected him to assist, so he could get the best possible view of what was going on. It was a great meeting. She knew that they were going to get along very well.

After that meeting, she headed back to the hotel room to get some rest. It was going to be a big day, tomorrow. It was going to be standing room only in the gallery as well as there were lots of other doctors, who were going to be in the OR with her. She took a bath and ordered room service for dinner. She changed into her pjs and waited. She didn't have to wait long as there was a knock on the door.

She opened the door to find Alex, carrying a sleeping Xander. Cristina took the boy from him and gave her son a kiss.

"He's all tuckered out," Alex said. "We had a great day at the zoo. I have lots of pictures. I will email the best ones to you."

"Thanks so much, Alex. You are indeed a gem," she said. "And from tomorrow, Xander will be in the daycare at Seattle Pres. So it is not going to be a problem for someone to take care of him. But thank you for today, Alex." She placed her sleeping son on the bed.

"Oh, by the way, _he_ saw Xander at the hospital," Alex admitted, sheepishly. Cristina looked up, immediately.

"What did you say?" she asked, anxiously.

"Oh, that Xander was my godson and that he was named after me. He asked about Xander's parents and I told him that they were people he did not know," Alex said. "Don't worry. I know what to say in the face of pressure."

"Okay, thanks," she said. "But I can't hide my presence anymore. Everyone is going to know that I am here."

"Oh, what happened?" he asked.

"Seattle Pres had a press conference about me being here. Anyone who sees the local news will know," she said. She picked up the remote and found a local network affiliate. It was the news and just coincidentally, the news story featuring Cristina popped up. Alex sat on the bed and watched the news conference. They were both silent after the news story since they both knew that the secret of her being there in Seattle was now fully out.

Then, Alex said, "At least, you look good." They both laughed.

* * *

Across town, Owen and Jordan were having dinner – spaghetti and meatballs – something he could whip up in a hurry. He didn't have much time to cook, since he held a full-time job and was now a widowed father. He put on the television to watch the news. He wasn't paying it much mind until the news anchor said the name, "Dr. Cristina Yang." He perked up, immediately and his eyes were glued to the television. He stared at the face of the woman he loved. Jordan noticed her father, staring at the television. His mouth was slightly open and he seemed transfixed. She looked at the woman on the television screen.

"Who's that, Daddy?" she asked.

"Someone I used to know," he said. "She was very important to me."

"She's pretty," Jordan declared.

"Yes, she is," Owen said.

"What's her name?" the little girl asked.

"Her name is Cristina," Owen said.

"Will I meet her?" Jordan asked.

"Maybe," Owen said. Then, he paused. "Yes, Jordan, I am going to make sure that you meet her."

"Okay," the little girl said, happily.

Owen had all of the information he needed. She was doing a surgery at Seattle Pres, so he was going to make it his business to take a trip across town to the other hospital. Yes, he was.

* * *

Owen had dropped off Jordan to the day care and just sat down for a cup of coffee and an English muffin at a table in the hospital staff cafeteria. Two peeved women came in to the cafeteria and looked around for him. They were coming straight to his table. He sighed.

"Did you see that last night? The news?" Meredith said, angrily. "She's here in Seattle and not one word did she say to us."

"Yeah and to top it off, she is over at Seattle Pres, showing them the Yang method. What are we here at Grey Sloan? Chopped liver? Where is the loyalty to the place that she grew up? This is where she was trained," Callie carped. She started a rant off in Spanish, which neither Meredith nor Owen understood.

"Yes, I saw it," Owen said. "It came as a shock to me, too."

"You know, she's here and she won't even come across to see Sofia and Zola," Meredith complained. "For goodness sake, they are her god-daughters. All she does is send birthday and Christmas presents with a card. No phone calls, nothing."

"Well, granted that you and Cristina did not end it very well, when she was last here, I think she probably thought it was not best to contact us," Owen said.

Meredith scoffed at first but then, Owen could see that she was about to cry. "I know things were not that good between us but for seven years, she was here and she was my person. Now, I don't even warrant a 'hey, how are you'. She is here in this city and she won't even come to see us," she said, her voice breaking in between. Callie put her arm around her friend.

"I am sorry about that, Meredith. How do you think I feel? I was her husband," Owen said. "But I am going to do something about it. I am going across to Seattle Pres to see her. I am going to see if I can persuade her to come here to have a lecture with the residents and the interns. After all, she has to acknowledge where she came from."

"You think she will go for that?" Callie asked.

"I think so," Owen said. The two women nodded and walked away. They were satisfied that Owen was going to fix it.

* * *

It was after lunch that Owen decided to go make the trip to Seattle Pres. He took in a deep breath before he walked in through Seattle Presbyterian's doors. The last time he was there was after Emma's death, when he was clearing away her things. He walked up to the receptionist, who remembered him as Dr Marling's husband. He asked if she could page Dr. Yang and tell her that she had a visitor in the lobby. The receptionist nodded and did the page.

He took a seat in the lobby and waited. Ten minutes had already passed and he not seen any sign of her as yet. He found his legs shaking nervously.

"What the hell, Hunt?" he told himself. "Pull yourself together. She can't see you as some nervous wreck." The woman sitting next to him gave him a weird look. He nervously tried to laugh it off.

Another five minutes passed before the elevator doors opened. She was dragging her hair up into a ponytail, as she came out. She was wearing the red scrubs that the surgeons of Seattle Pres wore. She walked up to the receptionist's desk.

"You paged me? I am Dr. Yang. You said that there was someone in the lobby to see me," she said. She had thought it would have been Alex but she wasn't surprised when the receptionist gestured in Owen's direction. She had fully expected that someone from her past would show up at the hospital, after the news broke in last night's broadcast. She walked slowly towards him, not knowing exactly what to feel.

What she wanted to do was run into his arms and let him kiss her and love her. That was what this man always did to her. But no, she thought. Four years had passed. Things were different, now. So she walked up calmly to him.

"Hello, Owen," she said. He smiled at her before he bent down and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

"Hello, Cristina," he said. "Good to see you."

"What are you doing here?" she asked.

"Well, I came to see an old friend. You certainly didn't seem like you were going to make your way to Grey Sloan to see your friends. So I came here," he said. "I saw you on the news last night."

"Yeah, I thought you would," she said. Then, she remembered about Emma. "Oh, I am sorry about Emma. Alex told me."

"Yes, it was sudden. Aneurysm in the middle of Target," Owen said. "Jordan, our daughter, was with her. It was traumatic for her. She was a little under three at the time."

"Oh, I am so sorry about that. Is she okay now?" she asked.

"Yes, she is. Would you like to see a picture of her?" Owen asked, as he fished in his pants pocket for his phone. He proudly showed her the picture of the blonde haired, blue eyed girl with braids in her hair.

"Aww, she has your coloring," Cristina said. "That's just great. She's very pretty."

"Yes, she is," Owen said, the pride evident in his voice.

"Okay," Cristina said. "It's been great catching up with you." Owen felt like she was dismissing him.

"Um, there is a reason I came," he said, quickly. "I was wondering whether you would like to do a lecture at Grey Sloan. The residents and the interns would love it. I am sure the attendings would also like to be there."

She hesitated before she spoke. "Well, I am going to be here for two more days to ensure that the there are no post-op complications. So I guess I could have the time to do it," she said.

"Good," Owen said. "Tomorrow, maybe, about 10 a.m."

"That would be fine," Cristina said. "But I do have to pass it first with the Chief of Surgery here. After all, I am on their dime."

"Who? Dr. Walters? Just tell him Owen Hunt requested it. He knows me well," Owen said. "I am sure he will be fine about it."

"Alright," Cristina said. "Once he gives his approval, I am yours." She stopped. "That didn't come out right; I mean I will be available to do the lecture."

"Good," Owen said. "I can have a car pick you up, tomorrow. Here or at your hotel?"

"Um, it's okay," she said. "I will just take a taxi." What she didn't tell him is that she would need to go to Seattle Pres to drop off Xander in the day care, before she could make it across to Grey Sloan. What she didn't realize is that Owen was trying to find out where she was staying.

"Okay," he said. "I will see you tomorrow." He gave her another kiss on the cheek, his lips lingering longer than they would normally would.

As he walked away, Cristina let out a big breath. When he kissed her cheek, she had goosebumps all over. The man still had that effect on her; she could not deny it.

"Goodbye, Owen," she said, softly. He turned around because he heard her, "Not goodbye, Cristina. This is hello all over again."

* * *

**A/N Please leave your thoughts and comments. I do appreciate when you take the time to do so. Also, thanks for the awesome reviews for the first chapter - all 34 of them. That breaks my personal record for the number of reviews for a chapter, so thanks. Anyway, please keep the reviews coming.**


	3. Chapter 3 Back at Grey Sloan

Cristina Yang stepped through the doors of Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital for the first time in four years. She looked around the lobby. She had some real good times here, especially as an intern but she had some truly awful times, here too. This was the place where she operated on Derek Shepherd with a gun to a head. This was also the place where she and Meredith were in the same operating room with a bomb. This was the place where she had been pierced by a falling icicle. That wasn't so bad because that was also the time when Owen Hunt became her knight in shining armor and picked her up from the ground and carried her inside. That was also the first time he had ever kissed her.

Then, she spotted him, coming towards her. He had the broadest smile on his face.

"Hello," he said. "I was hoping to be here, already before you came." He kissed her on the cheek, again, lingering a little longer than was normal for a peck on the cheek. She again felt the goosebumps.

"It's okay. I do know my way around here," she said, with a smile.

"Did you get here okay? I mean I could have sent someone to pick you up," he said.

"Yes. I had some stuff to do at Seattle Pres. I had to visit my patient," she said. She did not mention that she had to drop Xander off at the daycare, there.

"So I knew that Dr. Walters would be amenable to my request," Owen said."He is a good guy."

"Yes," Cristina said. "He remembers you when you were married to Emma."

"Yes," Owen said, quietly. Somehow, he felt really strange talking about Emma with Cristina. While it was true that Emma had been part of his life for about three years, he never really felt married to her. She used to say that there was a third person in their marriage, meaning that the specter of Cristina was always there. He had been ashamed because it was true. Sometimes, at night, he would dream about her and would call out her name. It would hurt Emma but he couldn't help it.

He was never happy. He could have been content because Emma had been a good wife and mother but she never sparked the passion in him that Cristina did. Emma deserved better. She needed someone who loved her the way he loved Cristina. In the end, their marriage was just a shell that existed purely for the sake of Jordan, whom they both loved very much.

Now that Owen had seen Cristina again, every single emotion he felt for her was welling up within him. The unbridled joy he felt now was intense, as he led her to the large lecture hall. Even though the lecture was hastily arranged, there was lots of excitement in the hospital. Cristina was one of their own who made good. Not good, she made great.

As she entered the hall, there was a hush among the attendees. Most of those gathered wore the light blue scrubs that the residents wore. But scattered among them were the navy blue scrubs. She recognized them, immediately. Meredith was there, as were Callie, April, Jackson, Arizona, Bailey and Alex. Alex gave her an encouraging wave and smile. She was grateful because she felt like every pair of eyes in that room was examining her.

She and Owen went up on the stage, where Owen took the podium, while she stood a little to the side.

"Thank you all for coming here and what a fantastic turnout for such short notice," Owen said. "We are indeed pleased to have Dr. Cristina Yang here to talk to you about her work and experiences. Just a few short years ago, she was one of you and look at her, now. A world-famous cardio-thoracic surgeon with two Harper Avery awards. She has been published many times and her work is currently being studied at medical schools all over the country and abroad. Her research has changed the face of medicine. So if she can do it, maybe among you there is a budding Harper Avery winner. So without much further ado, let's introduce Dr Cristina Yang."

The applause was thunderous as she took the podium. Owen whispered, "Good luck," before he left the stage and took a seat in the front row. He could not stop smiling as he observed her on the stage.

"I am not going to stick behind that podium because that is not my style," she said. She took the microphone off the podium and started walking. "This is how it is going to go, folks. I am going to tell you a little about me, about my work and about some of the stuff I have done. After that, I am going to open the floor to you, so you can ask me anything, as long as it is not too personal. You are free to ask about my time here as a resident and a fellow and my research in New York, though I may have to leave out some of the confidential parts. You can also ask about surgical methods I have pioneered and how I came about them. I am sure that would be most interesting for most of you. So let's get started."

And so she did. She talked about herself, her work and surgery. After she opened the floor, the questions were many. Most were about surgery and her research. Some questioned her mindset on how she thought about surgery. There were very few personal questions, until Meredith came up to the microphone and asked her question.

"Dr. Yang, what do you remember most about your time here at Grey Sloan?" Meredith said. There was great purpose to that question, Cristina knew.

"Some of the best years I have ever spent in my life. I had the greatest group of friends, who came in with me when we were interns. Dr Grey was included among them. We were Meredith, Alex, George, Izzie and myself. Strangely, the initials of our first names spelled out the word, MAGIC. And yes, we were magic. We stuck together through thick and thin. Two of them are still here among you – Dr Grey and Dr. Karev. We lost George at the end of our second year. He died a hero, saving a young woman from being dragged by a bus. George was the best of us. He was good and kind and generous." Cristina sighed as she thought about poor, sweet George.

"Then, Izzie left the program in our third year, after surviving cancer. I still think about her sometimes and wonder what she is doing. She was perhaps the most compassionate of us," she added. She didn't want to say that Izzie had been fired. Somehow, that did not feel right.

"Then, it was just Meredith, Alex and me. We were MAC, missing our G and I. We were as thick as thieves from then on. We were there for each other for some of our best times and certainly, some of our worst times. Remember that shooting that we had at this hospital, quite a few years back. We were third year residents, then. I had to operate with a gun to my head on Meredith's husband, Derek. Alex nearly died from a gunshot wound. My own boyfriend was also shot." She nodded at Owen.

"Then, in our fifth year, Meredith and I were in a plane crash. We lost Meredith's younger sister, Lexie, in that crash. We were stuck for four days out in the wilderness. It was so cold, I remember. Meredith and I huddled together for warmth. Yeah, we had some really rough times but we stuck together. In the end, Meredith, Alex and I always knew we had each other." Meredith was teary-eyed, as she stood at the microphone. She walked slowly back to her seat, silently crying.

She had some other questions and after an hour and a half, it was all over. The residents and interns came up to her and asked questions. She signed some of their journals, where her articles had been published. It was another half-hour before she was finally free. Meredith, Alex and Callie were still waiting.

"We were wondering if you would like to grab some lunch with us," Callie said. "Catch up on old times." Cristina looked at Alex and Meredith. Alex nodded. He felt that she should do this. Meredith's tears had dried and she had a smile on her face.

"Okay," Cristina said. "I hope the food has got better, since I left." They all laughed. The four friends walked out of the lecture hall, together. They started to chat, like if she had never left.

Owen had wanted to talk to Cristina after the lecture. He watched as Cristina left with her old friends. He wanted to ask her out to dinner. He looked at his watch, seeing that it was lunchtime. They were probably going to the staff cafeteria for lunch. He would have to wait till then.

He was also hungry and also went to the cafeteria. He saw Cristina, Alex, Meredith and together in a corner. They were chatting and it seemed to him that the conversation was lively and fun. It was like if she had never left and Meredith and Cristina had put that bad business behind them.

He had his lunch and quietly waited until they were through. Meredith and Callie left, while it was only Alex and Cristina still chatting at the table. It was going to be now or never. He got up from his seat and approached their table.

"Hey, Cristina, that was really a wonderful Q&A session that you had with the residents," Owen said. "Thank you so much for coming to talk to them. I think the young ones learned a lot."

"No problem, Owen. It was my pleasure," she said. "I rather enjoyed it myself, especially chatting about the good old days."

"Yes, I saw that," Owen said. "Can I speak to you for a moment?"

"Sure," Cristina said. "Be right back, Alex." Her friend nodded. She got up and followed Owen to a quiet corner of the cafeteria.

"So what do you want to ask?" she said, cocking her head to one side. "I don't think I have time to do any more lectures. I am leaving, tomorrow."

"No, no, it's not that," he said. "I was wondering if you would like to go to dinner with me, tonight. I pick you up at your hotel, maybe around 7.30 p.m. We can go to one of those places that you used to like. That Italian place. I could make reservations."

"Um," she said. He could see her hesitation. As much as she wanted to go to dinner with Owen, there was the small problem of what to do with the three-year-old boy, who called her mommy.

"Please," he pleaded.

"Um," she said, again. "Tell you what, just give me a couple of minutes. I need to ask Alex something and then, I will tell you if it is possible."

"Okay," he said. He was totally puzzled. Why did she need to speak to Alex about their date? He watched her as she walked back to Alex. He wished he could read their lips.

"Alex, can you take Xander tonight? Owen just asked me out on a date," Cristina said.

"For the whole night?" Alex said. Then, he smiled. "You think you might get a little something something from the big guy."

"I don't know, Alex. Jeez, let's not get too personal, here," she scoffed. "Can you take Xander for the night?"

"Of course I can," he said. "Jo will help me." Jo was Alex's girlfriend.

"Jo?" Cristina said in alarm. "You won't tell her anything, will you?" Alex could see the anxiety on Cristina's face.

"Of course not, I will just tell her that I am going to babysit the little guy for the night," he said.

"Thanks, I will pick him up in the morning, as soon as I can," Cristina said. "We're leaving, tomorrow, anyway."

"Okay," Alex said. "Hope you have a great date and night. Just remember what a peach of a friend I have been. Also, my birthday is coming up, just so you know." He laughed.

"Of course, Alex. You will get the best present ever," she said. "Let me go and tell him that I can go out with him."

She went back to Owen, who had been observing her conversation with Alex. He was still mystified about why she needed to speak to Alex.

"Okay, Owen," she said. "Dinner tonight. I am staying at the Four Seasons, Room 612."

"Good," he said. "I am so looking forward to tonight."

"Me, too," she answered. They looked at each other and smiled.

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**A/N Please leave your thoughts and comments. I do appreciate them. Keep those reviews coming. **


	4. Chapter 4 The Dinner Date

**A/N Some mature content**

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Owen almost could not contain his glee as he jumped on to the elevator at the Four Seasons Hotel. There were two other people who were on the elevator and they did not understand why this man had the biggest smile on his face. He found himself on the sixth floor, looking for Room 612. He knocked on the door.

"Coming," he heard her say. She opened the door, looking beautiful but a little flustered.

"Hey, what's the matter?" he asked. "Why are you looking this way?"

"Oh, nothing," she said, as she let him into her room. "Have a seat. I just have to put on my shoes." He took a seat in an armchair, while she inelegantly stuffed her feet into her stilettos. She had a distant look about her, which made Owen wonder what that was all about.

"Okay, I am ready," she said, picking up her handbag. They left her room and headed down to the elevator. He led her out of the hotel lobby and into the parking lot, where his SUV was parked.

"Hey, new vehicle," she said. "I remember the truck."

"Ah, well, I had to get rid of that, when Jordan was born. We needed a more family vehicle," he said. As he opened the door for her, she noticed the car seat in the back. It was the same brand that she used for Xander in New York. She was about to say that, then she stopped herself. He didn't know about Xander.

He got in on the other side and started driving. He noticed she was quiet. Little did he know that she was thinking about their son. Just 10 minutes prior to Owen's arrival, Alex had come to pick up Xander.

"Alex, he is going to be here any minute, now," she said. "You're cutting it so close."

"I tried to get away from the hospital, as fast as I could. We had a slight complication. I left Jo to close," he said. "That's how I managed to get here in time."

"Okay, you're here. Here is all his stuff. His toys, his snacks, his pajamas, fresh clothes for the morning," she said, handing him a bag.

"You know we could avoid all of this subterfuge if you just tell the man that he has a son," Alex said. "There isn't any reason that he shouldn't know, now. Emma is dead. He is single. You are single. Look, you're even going out with him, tonight. Clearly, that is a sign that you are both interested in rekindling the flames."

"It's just complicated," Cristina replied. "Consider how angry he is going to be. I mean I have known about this for more than three years. I had my reasons not to tell him. He had just got married and just had a kid. I was saving his marriage and his family. When Emma died, I considered it but it was too late. He was probably grieving and for me to drop that on him at that moment, I didn't think it was necessary. Now, we have different lives. I live in New York, where Xander and I have a good life. He lives here in Seattle with Jordan and I am sure they have a pretty good life. Why disrupt each other's life?"

"That sounds to me like a bunch of excuses, Cristina Yang. But whatever. It's your life and you are my friend," he said. "I will do my best to keep your secrets. I may not agree but my loyalty is to you." He picked up Xander, who gave his Uncle Alex a big hug. "I will see you in the morning. Come early, so Jo doesn't see you."

Cristina nodded. Then, a couple of minutes later, Owen arrived at her hotel room. No wonder she was flustered.

It was Owen's voice that had brought her back to reality, when he said that she was rather quiet.

"Oh, I am sorry. I was just thinking," she said, giving him a smile. He smiled back, his blue eyes twinkling. In fact, the smile could not be wiped off his face, the entire time he was with her.

"Anything important?" he asked.

"Just thinking how nice it is that we're going out together. Kinda reminds me of the good old days, even though we never really had time to go out much. We practically lived in the hospital," she reminded him.

"Yup, we did," he said. He pulled up in front of the restaurant and parked his vehicle. "Well, here we are. Do you remember this place?"

"Yes," she said. "I always loved their food. I hope it is still good."

"I don't know. I haven't been here in years," he said. "Truthfully, I never brought Emma here because this was one of our places. It just didn't seem right."

She looked at him with surprise. "You know somehow that made me feel good," she said. "One of our places. Like sacred ground for nobody else but us."

"Yeah, I felt that way about it," he said. He offered her his arm and she took it, as they walked to the entrance of the restaurant.

The maitre d', Paolo, was so pleased to see them. He had not seen the doctors in years.

"Dr Yang, Dr. Hunt, so good to see the both of you," he said, beaming. "When I saw the reservation, I thought it was you. And I see you reserved the table by the window. Come, follow me." He led them to their favorite table in the restaurant.

As they took their seats, Cristina took a look around. "I see they have upgraded the décor but the setting is still familiar and we still get our favorite table."

The waiter came and brought white wine for Cristina and single malt scotch for Owen. Cristina was a little surprised. "We didn't order anything," she said.

The waiter smiled, "Everything was ordered beforehand, Dr. Yang. We will bring the appetizers in a bit." As he left, Cristina looked over, curiously at Owen.

"Did you do that?" she asked.

"Guilty as charged," he said. "I really wanted to make tonight special so I ordered all of the food that I know that you like. It is going to be a five-course meal."

"Oh, my God, we might barely be able to move after that," she said. "But I am not complaining. Everyone knows that I love food."

"You must have some excellent choices in fine dining in Manhattan," he said.

"Well, you know me, I barely know the inside of a kitchen," she said. "So I do eat out a lot and I do get a lot of takeout, too. Xan-." She was going to say that Xander had a refined palate, since he had been exposed to so many different types of cuisine and he already knew what he liked and didn't like. She stopped herself in time from saying his name. This was going to be difficult, she thought. Xander was such an important part of her life and to not talk to him was going to keep her on her toes.

"What was that you were going to say?" he asked. She shook her head.

"Nothing," she said. She was saved by the waiter bringing their appetizers. The rest of the evening was a blur of good conversation and amazing food. They were both a little bit surprised by how well they were getting along. The conversation came easy and the laughter was frequent. By the time they got to the dessert, Cristina barely got through it but she managed to finish it. She lay back on her chair.

"I am so stuffed," she said. "And you know that has to be a feat because I am known as the bottomless stomach." Owen smiled. He remembered how much Cristina could eat, when they were together. She would out-eat him on a regular basis but it never showed on her slim body. Even at the hospital, she always had some snack in her coat pocket.

"Well, maybe you could work out some of that food by doing me the honor of dancing with me," he said. She groaned. She did want to dance with him but she was so full.

"Come on," he encouraged. He got up and put out his hand for her to take. She put her hand into his and he helped her up.

"I am going to be a log you have to carry out there," she said, still groaning, as he led her to the dance floor, which was in the middle of the restaurant. There were maybe only about two other couples out there.

"It's a burden I will happily bear," he said. He took her into his arms and the familiarity of it all came back to them. They started in the classic waltz position as they started moving to the music but halfway through it, they ended up with her arms around his neck and his around her waist. It was what they were used to. It was so nice being in his arms that they continued to dance when the second song came on. And then, they danced the third. By that time, there was no space between them as their bodies swayed in time to the music. He was starting to feel the changes in the body, as he found himself being turned on by the closeness of her body.

"Let's go back to your hotel room," he whispered. His lips brushed against her ear and she got a shiver throughout her body. He hoped she understood what he meant by that.

"Okay," she whispered back. Owen quickly paid their bill and they hurriedly left the restaurant.

"Come back and see us soon, Dr. Hunt, Dr. Yang," Paolo said, as he left but neither of them really heard him. It was a race back to her hotel, as Owen timed the green lights, so he wouldn't have to stop for the traffic lights. When they finally made it back to the hotel, he quickly parked and they ran to the hotel elevator, as Owen impatiently pressed the button for the 6th floor. As the elevator doors closed, Cristina launched herself at him.

It was a ferocious kiss as their teeth clashed for a bit but then, it was all about lips and tongues after that. It was like they could not get enough of each other. When the elevator doors opened, they hurriedly made it out, almost bowling over an older gentleman who was stepping in. "Sorry, sorry," Owen said but they did not look back.

Cristina slid the key into her door and pushed the open the door in a swift movement. As the door closed behind him, they continued to kiss as they pulled off the clothes off each other. By the time, they got to the bed, they were both naked and so ready for each other. It was without much further ado that he entered her.

"Oh, God, yes," she screamed. There wasn't much talk, as their bodies thrashed against each other. She couldn't get enough of him, as she pushed him deeper inside of her.

"Fuck me, Owen," she whispered. He pounded into her with an increasing speed and vigor. There was no one else who could turn him on like this. He hoped that he was giving her as much pleasure as she was giving to him.

As he continued to push into her, she held on the posts on the headboard for support. She screamed when she came, as the waves of pleasure pushed her body past the shuddering point.

"Owen!" she screamed his name. Now that he knew that he had brought her to orgasm, he finally allowed himself the release that he had been holding back until she came. He too shuddered when he came.

He rolled off of her and they both tried to get their breathing back to normal. As they both calmed down, he said, "I have missed you so much."

"As clearly have I," she said, chuckling. As they lay there for a bit, she suddenly said, "Will you be interested in another go at it, Dr. Hunt?"

He looked at her and grinned. "Sure," he said. She climbed up on him and started alternately kissing and biting him on his chest and stomach. Then, she went further south and slipped him into her mouth, her lips and tongue working on the shaft of his member. He closed his eyes, reveling in the pleasure that she was giving to him. Though the physical pleasure was intense, there was something else, he knew. It was the emotional joy that was overwhelming him. It had been a long, long time, since he felt this happy.

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**A/N Please leave your thoughts and comments. I do appreciate reading them. So please keep the reviews coming.**


	5. Chapter 5 Finding Out

Owen woke up and rubbed his eyes. He wondered for a moment where he was but then, he saw her next to him. The beautiful face of the woman he loved. She looked so peaceful with her ebony curls spread across her pillow. He stared at her for a long time.

It was as if she could feel his gaze on her when her eyes suddenly fluttered open. "Hey," he said.

She looked a little startled to see him there but then, she said, "Hey, back. How long have you been staring at me?"

"Maybe about 10 minutes. You looked so peaceful and quiet," he said. "A far cry from when you are awake."

She laughed. He joined in the laughter. He reached over and took her hand and kissed it.

"I was thinking," he said. "I know you're going back to New York, today but I don't think this should end, here. I want it to continue. I want us to continue. I know it is long distance but I think we can make it work. Let's try and make it work. And if it does, maybe we can make changes in our lives so we can be together."

"Hey, wait a minute. You're moving too fast, here. After all, we just reconnected. How about we take one step at a time?" she said. "Last night, for example, was really really great." She snuggled up next to him.

"Yes, it was," he said. "We never had a problem there. It was all the other stuff that used to give us problems. But we're older, now. Things that bothered us then probably won't be an issue, now."

"Maybe," she said. "Okay, let me be honest, I love being with you. There's no question about that. I also have to admit that I still have feelings for you."

"Yes, that's what I am talking about. It's still there. I mean, even when I was married to Emma, it was all still there for me," he said. He sighed. "I know it was unfair to Emma but I couldn't help what I felt. I cared for Emma but I didn't love her the way a husband should. There was just someone else in my heart. I love Jordan; she is probably the best thing came out of our marriage. But Emma and me – there was something definitely missing."

She listened quietly to what he had to say. It was clear that he wanted to move forward with a relationship but she still had a major secret that would probably derail any chance of them being together.

"Okay but let's see how it goes," she said. She didn't want to be discouraging but she couldn't help it.

"Alright," he said. "I can see where you want to be cautious. I can handle that." He leaned over and kissed her lightly on the lips.

Then, she remembered she had to pick up Xander early so Jo wouldn't see her at Alex's house.

"Um, don't you have to pick up Jordan?" she asked, quickly.

"Oh, God, yes I do. I have to pick her up at my mom's house," Owen said."Then, I have to take her to daycare at the hospital. I may want to lie in bed with you all day but I think that responsibility calls and I have to get up. Is there a toothbrush I can use?" He got up from the bed and headed to the bathroom.

"Yeah, there is an extra one in the drawer near the sink," she said. She stretched and lay in bed, in the meantime.

Owen went to the bathroom and found the toothbrush. As he brushed his teeth, he noticed a small brown teddy bear with a blue bow tie, sitting on the counter. That was strange to see, he thought. Maybe the people who stayed in the room before Cristina had left it there. The housekeeper probably forgot to pick it up, when she was cleaning the room.

As he finished brushing his teeth, he took a quick shower and came out of the bathroom, wearing only a white towel. He changed back into his suit from the previous night.

"At my age, I am doing the walk of shame," he said. "That's pretty funny. My mother is going to laugh at me." He gave her a kiss.

"Oh, by the way, could you pass by the hospital on your way to the airport?" he asked. "Jordan had seen you on television the other day and wanted to meet you. I told her that you were important to me."

"We'll see," she told him. She wasn't too sure about that happening since she would have Xander with her on the way to the airport.

"See you in a bit, hopefully," he said. As soon as he left, Cristina jumped out of bed and ran to the bathroom. She quickly brushed her teeth and took a shower before changing into a sweatshirt and jeans. She noticed the teddy bear, sitting quietly on the counter.

"Damn!" she said, as she realized that she had not put that teddy bear away. But she had no time to think about it, now, as she hustled out of her room and the hotel to get to Alex's house. The doorman got her a taxi and she was on her way.

When she got to Alex's house, she told the taxi to wait and to keep the meter running. She was only going to be a couple of minutes and she would need to head back to the hotel. She quickly ran up the garden path and rang the bell, furiously. She needed to get Xander as quickly as possible. Within a couple of minutes, a sleepy looking Alex was at the front door with Xander in his arms. He handed the sleeping boy over to Cristina before he closed the door. Unbeknownst to the two of them, there was someone else who saw the exchange. Jo, Alex's girlfriend had been crouched at the top of the stairs, wondering why Alex had to get out of bed, so fast. She now knew why.

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Owen picked up Jordan at his mother's house. His mom saw him in the suit and instinctively, knew why he was still wearing a very dressy dark suit.

"Had a good time last night?" she asked, with a cheeky grin.

"Yeah, mom," he said, giving her a kiss. "Thanks for taking care of Jordan." He took his daughter's hand.

"Always a pleasure, son. I love spending time with my granddaughter," she said. Owen and Jordan said goodbye.

He figured he wouldn't bother to go home to change. He could just take off his jacket and just use the pants and the shirt under his lab coat. Nobody would notice, anyway. Thankfully, he had a fresh change of underwear in his locker at work. Those were for the nights when he had to work.

"So Jordan, how was your night?" he asked his daughter.

"Good," she said. "Me and grandma made cookies. I have some in a bag. You can have, if you want."

"Thanks," he said. He loved his daughter so much. He wondered what it would be like for her to have a sibling.

When they got to the hospital, he took off his jacket and left it in the SUV. He walked Jordan to the daycare, where she promptly gifted him two chocolate chip cookies. He thanked her profusely and gave her a kiss. After a quick change of underwear, he headed to the staff cafeteria as he was very hungry.

He grabbed a cup of coffee and an English muffin with ham and eggs. He could have that and Jordan's chocolate chip cookies and that should dampen his hunger, he thought.

Someone left a newspaper on the table, so he started reading it. He didn't even notice when Alex's girlfriend, Jo and her friend, Stephanie took the table behind him. Both were surgical fellows at Grey Sloan.

"Girl," Jo said. "I have got the most amazing piece of gossip, ever."

"What?" Stephanie asked. "I need something amazing. I just had the worst night."

"Well, yesterday, Alex brought home the cutest little half-Asian kid, who was going to stay the night. He was so damn cute. Dark, curly hair, chocolate brown eyes and the sweetest mouth. I asked him if he stole the kid from the hospital. He told me that he was just watching him for a friend. He was all mysterious about it," Jo said.

Owen's ears perked up, immediately. That was Xander, Alex's godson. He had met him the other day.

"Really?" Stephanie said. "Are you sure he hasn't been stepping out on you and that was the fruit of his loins."

"Don't be ridiculous," Jo said. "Anyway, the kid's name is Xander. He was really energetic. He kept us up for almost the whole night. That's why I look like something the cat dragged in. I hardly got any sleep last night.

"Anyway, Alex and I finally hit the sack and then the doorbell rings, really early this morning. Alex jumps out of the bed like a bat out of hell, rushes into the room, where Xander was sleeping, picks him up and runs down the stairs. It's clear that he doesn't want me to see who are Xander's parents. So while he is downstairs, I crouch down at the top of the stairs to take a look. I could not believe my eyes. Stephanie, you would never believe in a million years who it was."

"You're killing me here, Jo," Stephanie said. "Speak, woman."

"Cristina Freaking Yang," Jo said. "Two time Harper Avery winner. One of the greatest surgeons in the country."

Owen choked on his English muffin. He hit his chest a couple of times. He felt his heart pounding. Cristina had a son and she did not tell him. They were most intimate last night and she hadn't said a word. He wondered who was the boy's father.

Then, he remembered all of the signs. From the time he saw Xander sitting with Alex, he was instantly reminded of Cristina. The dark, curly hair, the full lips – all characteristics of Cristina. Then, he remembered the teddy bear in the bathroom. That must be Xander's toy. He couldn't believe that he was so slow to figure this out.

He didn't know what to think. He could barely breathe. He needed to talk to her. He needed to get to the bottom of this. He could not eat anymore. He pushed away what was left of his breakfast. He finished off his coffee. He picked up the chocolate chip cookies, putting them in a napkin and walked out of the cafeteria. He found his feet taking him to the hospital parking lot and then to his SUV. He was going to drive back to the Four Seasons.

As he drove, there were so many competing thoughts but there was one thought that kept coming back over and over again. Was he the father of Xander? He knew the boy was probably about three years old and if he worked it back, it was indeed possible that he was the father. There was that night in the on-call room before she left to go to New York.

But Cristina never wanted children. He had never really got over the fact that she had the abortion. It always hurt him. But here she was, with a child of her own. Did she keep the child of another man when she aborted his? That stabbed him in the heart.

"Oh, God, Cristina, what else are you hiding from me? I need to know," he said. He pulled into the parking lot at the Four Seasons. He realized he was still wearing his lab coat. He tore it off and tossed in the back seat. He literally ran into the hotel and made his way to the elevator. The night before, he impatiently pushed the button for the sixth floor. This time, it was for a different reason.

As soon as the doors opened, he headed straight to room 612 and knocked. Actually, it was more like pounded. He could hear Cristina's voice on the inside, saying, "No, Xander, don't open that door. We don't know who it is."

But those words fell on deaf ears, as the door was opened to reveal the same little boy that Owen had seen with Alex, just three days before. Xander recognized the tall blonde man, whom he had met when he was with his Uncle Alex. He had a big grin on his face. He was so cute, Owen thought.

"Hello!" Xander said in a very singsong voice. Owen's heart melted.

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**A/N Please leave your thoughts and comments. I do appreciate them very much.**


	6. Chapter 6 Is He My Son?

"Hello, Xander," Owen said to the small boy, standing in the doorway. Cristina heard Owen's voice and came forward. She stood behind her child, putting her hands on his shoulders. She knew she was totally caught out. She wasn't quite sure what she was going to do or say.

"Owen," she said. "What are you doing here?" Her voice shook a little.

"Surprised to see me?" he asked. "Can I come in?" She let him in, while Xander stared at the tall, blonde man.

"A bit," she said. She wondered what made him come back there. They both knew that they had to talk but neither of them wanted to do so in front of Xander. It was really awkward in the room, but then Owen remembered the chocolate chip cookies that he had in his pocket. He took them out and unwrapped the cookies from the napkin. He offered one to the child, whom he suspected to be his son. Xander looked across at his mother for approval. She nodded, so he accepted the cookie. He bit into it and smiled.

Owen offered Cristina the second cookie but she declined. So Owen and Xander each had a chocolate chip cookie. Owen stared at the little boy, as he enjoyed his cookie. He desperately wanted to find signs of himself in the boy's face. Clearly, he had Cristina's coloring with his thick, dark curls and chocolate brown eyes. He also had Cristina's mouth but Owen was pretty sure that Xander had his nose and his cheekbones. Maybe he was grasping at straws, Owen thought, but he was a little more than certain.

When they were both through with their cookies, Owen took the napkin and wiped the crumbs and the chocolate from the sides of Xander's mouth. Cristina thought it was such a fatherly gesture. Stop it, she thought.

"I know you want to talk but I need to get Xander to sleep. He had a pretty rough night, last night and he needs to get some sleep or he will be really cranky when we travel this afternoon. There is nothing worse than traveling with a cranky child," she said. She called out to her son, "Come, Xander. Let's get some nap time." The little boy climbed on to the bed and Cristina lay next to him.

"Owen, can you just take a seat on the armchair and stay quiet for the moment," she said. "He will fall asleep in a bit and then, we can have our conversation in the bathroom." Owen did as he was told and sat down in the armchair. He couldn't help but stare. To him, it was the most amazing scene. Xander hugged his teddy bear, while Cristina hugged Xander. He felt so emotional about seeing them like this. Xander's eyes started closing and five minutes later, he fell asleep. Cristina eased herself off the bed and beckoned to Owen to follow her into the bathroom. He got up from his seat, entered the bathroom and closed the door behind them.

"Well, speak," she said. "Say what you have to say." Cristina sat on the edge of the tub.

"Why didn't you tell me that you had a son?" he said. "The way I found out was quite insulting. After all, we just spent the night together." His voice was steady but she could hear how he was trying to control his emotions.

"Did Alex tell you?" she asked, wondering whether she would have to give her friend two smacks behind his head.

"No, he didn't tell me but apparently, he has known this for a very long time," Owen said. "After all, he is your child's godfather and frequent babysitter. He has kept your secret so you cannot blame him. I actually learned this from a conversation between Jo and Stephanie. Apparently, Jo saw you when you came to pick up Xander, this morning. Probably after I left here, you bolted out of here and picked up your son."

Damn that Jo, Cristina thought.

"So why didn't you tell me?" he asked.

"I didn't want to hurt you," she said. "I know we have our history." She didn't say it but she knew the abortion was always at the back of his mind. He had stood by her while she did it but that didn't mean it had hurt him any less.

Then, he asked the question that she knew he wanted to ask. "Who is his father? Is he mine?" Owen asked. He could barely get the words out. He was waiting with bated breath for the words that he hoped she would say.

In that instant, Cristina saw her world as she knew it would fall to pieces, if she answered "yes." Her life would never be the same. When she came to Seattle, she had no plans to even see Owen. She had planned to get in and get out of Seattle, without anyone but Alex knowing that she had even been there. But that press conference had changed everything and exposed her presence in the city. If it hadn't been for that, Owen would probably not have made that trek to Seattle Pres to find her, then she wouldn't have done that lecture and she wouldn't have slept with him. Oh, what a mess. She didn't want her life to change, right now. She and Xander had a great life, she reasoned.

So, she stammered out, "N-n-o." She did not look at him, as she said it. She could not look at him in the face and lie like that.

"What? You kept some other guy's child?" he said. He was distraught. He was angry. He was hurt.

"Well, he was just some guy I met in New York. It wasn't anything major," she said. Again, she could not look at him. But then, she began to tell the truth.

"I didn't find out that I was pregnant until I was well past my first trimester. So I had the baby. I had thought about giving him for adoption. But when I held in my arms, I knew I couldn't go through with it," she said. "So I kept him."

Owen was silent. At first, it was hard for him to think because all of the thoughts that were flooding his brain at the moment. He had looked at Cristina, who seemed to be staring intently at her feet. Why was she unable to look at him, as she spoke. She had kept the secret of her son from him for more than three years. In fact, Alex had kept her secret for more than three years. Why would they go to such lengths to keep that from him? Surely, there must be something more, he thought. He knew what he was going to do. He calmed himself before he spoke.

"Okay, if you say so," he said. "I better head back to the hospital, now. Remember what I asked you this morning about meeting Jordan. Can you still do that?"

Cristina felt so guilty that she felt she had no choice but to agree. "Sure," she said. "I will come by."

"Good," he said. "What time?" He needed to know precisely what time she was going to be there.

"We're checking out at 12 and we should be there by 12.30," Cristina said. She felt a lot calmer now. It seemed that Owen had accepted what she said.

"Okay, I will see you then," he said. As he left the bathroom, he stared at the sleeping child on the bed. Xander looked so angelic, so perfect. Owen was going to find out, one way or the other.

* * *

When Cristina and Xander arrived at the hospital at 12.30, she was wheeling her suitcase in one hand and Xander in the next. Alex, who was in the lobby, spotted her and rushed across.

"Are you crazy? He could see Xander," Alex said in a panic. He looked around for any signs of the Chief of Surgery.

"Relax, Alex. He already knows," Cristina said in a resigned tone. "Apparently, your girlfriend was the one who gave it away. Apparently, she saw when I picked him up this morning and spilled the beans to her friend, Stephanie. Owen overheard and he came to confront me at the hotel."

"Damn! No wonder she had that weird smile on her face, when I went back to bed," Alex said. "So, I guess that means he knows about everything? I mean everything."

"Um, no," Cristina said. "I told him he wasn't his." She sighed.

"What? What is the matter with you, Yang?" Alex yelled at her. He was exasperated because he didn't want to bear the burden of this secret, anymore.

"I just couldn't," Cristina said. "I didn't want to disrupt both of our lives. I have to go back to New York. That's where I live. That's my life. Seattle is no longer my life. I left it a long time ago."

"Dude!" Alex said. He threw his hands in the air.

"Can you give Xander and me a ride to the airport?" she asked. "Maybe around one. I don't think I will be staying longer than that." Alex looked at his watch.

"Yeah, I guess I can swing that. I will meet you back here at one. Oh, there is your baby daddy. He is coming here with his daughter," Alex said, as he spotted Owen and Jordan stepping off the elevator. "Gotta go. I cannot be here for this charade." He made himself scarce as he disappeared down a corridor.

Cristina put a smile on her face when Owen and Jordan approached.

"Hello!" Xander said, loudly. He knew this man had given him chocolate chip cookies. Those cookies tasted good.

"Hello," Owen said. He ruffled the boy's soft curly hair. "Well, this is Jordan. She and my mom made the chocolate chip cookies."

"Very nice to meet you, Jordan," Cristina said. "I am Cristina and this is Xander."

"I saw him before," Jordan said. "He was with Uncle Alex." She nodded her head because she knew what she was talking about. "Is he your son?"

"Yes," Cristina said.

"I saw you on tv," Jordan said. "Daddy said he knew you and that you were very important to him."

"He said that?" Cristina said. She looked at Owen, the guilt was overwhelming her. She opened her mouth to speak but Xander interrupted.

"I need to go to the bathroom," he said. "I need to pee."

"I will take him," Owen said, immediately. "You and Jordan can get to know each other better." He took Xander's hand and they went to the men's bathroom. He helped Xander do his toilet and then, he washed both his hands and Xander's hands. He took out two packages from his lab coat.

"Xander, I am just going to put a swab inside your mouth. It won't hurt, I promise," he said. He tore open one of the packages and swabbed the inside of Xander's cheek. He put it in a receptacle, immediately. He then did the same to himself and placed that swab in another receptacle. He labeled each of them – one with Alexander Yang and the other with his own name. He put the receptacles back into his pocket and threw away the packages.

He and Xander walked back to the lobby, where Cristina and Jordan were having an animated conversation. They seemed to be getting along really well.

"Oh, there you are," Cristina said. "I guess we must be on our way, soon." She took Xander's hand.

"Do you need a ride to the airport?" Owen asked. "I can drop you off if you need it."

"Um,no. Alex is dropping me off," she said. She spotted her friend, reluctantly making his way back down the corridor.

"Okay, then," Owen said. He kissed her on the cheek and asked Xander for a hug. The little boy ran into his arms and hugged him. Owen wanted to tell him that he was his boy.

"Call me," Owen said. She nodded. She gave Jordan a kiss on the cheek.

"Are we ready?" Alex said. He took the suitcase and together, he, Cristina and Alex left. Owen dropped off Jordan to the hospital lab. He spoke directly to the manager of the lab about the DNA test he wanted to have done.

"Discretion, please, Dr. Charles," he said. "Let me know when the results are ready." Dr. Charles nodded.

"I will do it myself, Dr. Hunt," Dr. Charles said, as he took the receptacles from Owen. As Owen walked away from the lab, he was now going to have incontrovertible proof whether Xander was his. He needed to know.

Several days passed and Owen finally got the call from the lab. After dropping Jordan off at daycare, he went to the lab and asked for Dr. Charles. The manager of the lab came out from his office and handed him a plain white envelope.

"Thank you, Dr. Charles," Owen said. He was excited. He stuffed the envelope in his lab coat pocket. He went and found himself a quiet conference room. He sat and let out a breath. He took the envelope out of his pocket and ripped it open, immediately.

He read the results, once. Then twice. Then a third time. The smile on his face grew bigger and bigger each time he read it. He finally read it aloud, "DNA results have revealed that the probability of Owen Hunt being the biological father of Alexander Yang is 99.99 percent."

He knew it. He knew that Xander was his son. He got up and did a little dance. Why didn't Cristina want to tell him this? If she wanted to play hardball, he was going to play hardball. He took out his phone and called his lawyer.

* * *

**A/N Please leave your thoughts and comments. I do appreciate them very much. Keep those reviews coming. Someone told me that my story was too hot. I assume she was talking about Chapter 4. Hmmm. By the way, this is going to messy before it gets better. It is not all daisies and sunshine. Plus a little drama is always necessary. **


	7. Chapter 7 A Court Date

When Cristina got the legal papers from Owen's lawyers, she had just finished giving a lecture to a class of medical students at Columbia Medical School. She had gone back to the hospital and found someone, waiting for her.

"Dr. Cristina Yang?" he asked. She confirmed it. He handed her the papers and she ripped open the envelope. She started reading the contents and began to hyperventilate. She got to her office and had to sit down.

"How dare he do this?" she yelled to no one, since her office was empty. She read the papers again. Owen was petitioning for joint custody of Alexander Yang. He clearly had not believed her, when she said that Xander was not his.

Even though she had been back in New York for eight weeks, she had not contacted Owen since she had left Seattle. Her guilt had been consuming her and she could not call him. She was aware that he tried to call her a couple of times because she saw his number on her phone but she never returned the calls. She was too ashamed to talk to him. Then, she got the legal papers. He probably wanted to talk to her about this.

But how did he know?

She needed to call Alex. He answered the phone after two rings. "Hey, Yang, what's up? How are you and my favorite godson doing?"

"We're doing okay," Cristina said. "I really need to talk to you. Did you tell Owen that Xander is his son?"

"Of course not," Alex replied. "Why would I do such a thing? Besides, the man barely speaks to me. We only speak professionally, of course. But other than that, nothing. Oh, there is also the fact that his eyes shoot daggers at me, whenever he looks in my direction."

"Then, how the hell does he know?" she said, perplexed at the situation.

"Okay, what happened?" Alex asked. "Clearly, Owen knows that he is Xander's dad and you find this very disturbing."

"More than disturbing. I just got served with legal papers. He is petitioning for joint custody of Xander," Cristina said. "And, according to this, I have a court date in two weeks here in Family Court. Apparently, he filed the papers here in New York and he has New York lawyers representing him. Also, he wants to be financially obligated to the care and upbringing of Xander."

She scoffed. "I don't need his money. I make more money that he does. Xander and I have been doing quite well without his help." She shook her head.

"Well, you should be grateful. Here is a man who is practically begging to give you money to care for your child," Alex said. "He isn't the enemy, Cristina. He just wants to be in his kid's life. And let's be honest, he is a good man. You know that."

"Yeah, I do," Cristina said. "I know I wronged him. I have my own selfish reasons but I do know that. That's why I can't talk to him. But this, now? He has his own kid. Jordan. She is the kid he always wanted," she said, as she flung the papers on to her desk. "She even looks like him. She has his coloring."

"Cristina, I am pretty sure he loves Jordan very much but he also knows that Xander is out there and is also his kid. But I don't think you realize that it's important to him because Xander is also your kid. Your child. Do you know how monumental that is? He never thought that would happen. You and he made a child together and you had it," Alex said. "You know that you are the love of his life and he finally has the kid that he always wanted with the love of his life." Cristina knew it was the truth. She sighed, loudly.

"He has been calling me but I have never returned to his calls," she said, ruefully. "Maybe if I had taken his calls, it would have never reached this stage."

"Well, maybe he thought he had to do what he had to do. You gave the man no choice," Alex told her. "You didn't want to talk to him."

"I never thought it would come to this," Cristina said. "Especially since -"

"Especially since what?" Alex asked. He could hear Cristina sighing heavily on the other end of the phone call. "Come out with it, Yang."

"I'm pregnant, Alex," she said, quietly. "About eight weeks gone."

"What the hell, Cristina?" Alex said. "Couldn't you guys wrap up his sausage before you started knocking boots?" He started to laugh on the other end, even though it wasn't a laughing matter. "Is it like your eggs are just waiting for this guy's sperm? I mean you are 38 years old, now, Cristina. Shouldn't you be slowing down on the fertility meter?"

"You would think, right?" she agreed. "Admittedly, I took a chance. Heat of passion moment kind of thing. Seriously, what is up with Owen's sperm? One swim down my canal and I am knocked up."

"So I guess you have another secret," he said. "Are you going to keep this baby?"

"Yes," she said, firmly. "Mainly because of Xander. He showed me that I could do it. As for Owen, I don't know how he will react to this. Right now, he's taking me to court. I guess I should wait until he gets here for our court date."

"Alright, let me know how everything goes," Alex said. "Going to surgery, now. Bye."

"Bye," Cristina said, as she hung up her phone. She immediately called her lawyer's firm, who put her in touch with one of the family lawyers in the firm. She now had representation and would be ready to meet Owen in court.

* * *

Owen stepped out of LaGuardia airport and hailed a taxi. He was going to stay at a hotel that was near the courthouse. As he peered out of his window in the back seat of the taxi, he pondered the journey that had brought him to New York.

As soon as he had found out that Xander was indeed his biological child, he had called his lawyer, Gary Merrick, to discuss his options and his rights. He explained that he did not know of the child's existence until recently, as the mother had not told him about the boy. His lawyer asked him exactly what was it that he wanted. All Owen knew was that he had wanted to be in the boy's life. He wanted to get to know his son and he wanted to provide financial support for the child. He wanted his child to get to know his daughter. He explained that the boy lived in New York and while it was impossible for him to visit every weekend, he hoped it would be possible for Xander to spend the summer with him and possibly, some of the major holidays.

"And what about the boy's mother? What is that relationship going to be like?" Merrick said.

"I don't know. I love Cristina very much," he said. "But she kept this from me. It has been extremely hurtful and I am quite angry about it. If I pursue it legally, I am certain the backlash will negatively affect our relationship. I would hope that it wouldn't but that would just be a pipe dream. But I am willing to pursue it legally because I do believe that I have the right to know my son and he has the right to know about me."

"Okay, then," Merrick said. "I can see where this is headed. I would advise that you get yourself a good lawyer in Manhattan. I can recommend someone. Let them file the petition on your behalf. You are going to ask for joint custody of the minor child."

"Before we do all that, I think I want to reach out to the boy's mother first. Maybe she can be reasonable about it and we can avoid all of the legalities," Owen said.

The lawyer agreed. "If you can work it out with her, it might be for the best. We can avoid going to court."

So that was when Owen started calling Cristina. He left many messages but she never returned any of his calls. After three weeks with no response, he felt he had no choice. He was going to pursue it, legally.

The taxi dropped him off at his hotel. He checked in and collapsed on his bed. He had done a full day of work and then caught the flight to New York. He was exhausted. Still, he knew he had to call Jordan, who was staying with his mother. She would be waiting for his call. He called and they spoke for about five minutes before they finally said good night to each other. He was too tired to do anything else but take a shower and brush his teeth. As he lay in his bed, he thought about Cristina. Tomorrow, he was going to face her in court.

* * *

Cristina had taken the day off to be in court. She met her lawyer, Phoebe Harrison just outside of the Family Court. "The opposing party is already here," Phoebe said. "Your ex-husband and his lawyer. They went in."

"Okay," Cristina said. She let out a big breath. She straightened her clothes and fluffed out her hair. She was ready to face Owen.

"We are the first case on the docket, so let's go in," Phoebe said. She opened the door and they both entered. Owen turned around, immediately as he heard the sound of the door open. He could not believe how beautiful Cristina looked.

She was always lovely but there was something special about her. She had almost an ethereal glow. Her skin was luminous. Her hair looked full and lush and glossy. Her suit fitted her tiny figure neatly, showing off the curve of her backside, quite clearly. She wore a red lipstick, which highlighted the fullness of her lips. He felt this desire to kiss those lips. That was the effect she always had on him. All he wanted to do was kiss those lips, whenever he was near her.

Cristina tried not to look in Owen's direction. She kept her gaze straight ahead and dare to not let her eyes stray to look at him. She would weaken, she knew. She had worn her red lipstick that day. It was to help her feel powerful. She was glad she wore it. She had a terrible bout of morning sickness, when she got up earlier in the day and she needed something to feel better. She didn't even know why they called it morning sickness, though. She got sick in the morning, in the afternoon, in the evening and at night. She had never had such issues when she was having Xander. She wondered if she was having a girl and maybe, that was why it was different.

She took her seat next to her lawyer. They didn't have to wait long, as the family court judge soon made his appearance. The bailiff announced the case.

Judge Milo Phoenix asked Owen's lawyer, Jared Kingston, to state his case. "My client Dr. Owen Hunt is seeking joint custody of Alexander Owen Yang, aged three. Dr. Hunt lives in Seattle but the said minor child lives in New York City with his mother, Dr. Cristina Yang, who is my client's former wife. He is also ready to fulfill all financial obligations with respect to the care and upbringing of the minor child. Dr. Hunt only learned of the child's existence about 10 weeks ago and is petitioning for joint custody because he feels that he is being denied his parental rights with regards to the minor child. He also recognizes that since the child is domiciled in New York, sharing physical custody on a weekly basis would be difficult, so he is willing to accept having Alexander stay with him and his daughter in Seattle during the summer and also on some holidays, which could be determined by Dr. Hunt and Dr. Yang."

"Also, since Dr. Hunt will be in New York for a few days for this case, he would also like to ask for access to Alexander, so he and the child can get familiar with each other."

Cristina sat next to her lawyer, very quietly. She wasn't feeling well. A wave of nausea had overtaken her and she desperately needed to go to the bathroom. She started to squirm and cold sweat but as she listened, she knew that what Owen was asking for, was not unreasonable. Alex was right. Owen was not the enemy. He was a good man and a good father. Then, there was Xander. As he grew older, he would probably start asking questions about his father. She didn't want her little boy to resent her. She saw her son's face in front of her. He had his father's nose and cheekbones. She made up her mind, there and then.

"Let him have it," she whispered to Phoebe.

"What?" Phoebe asked. "Have what? You're agreeing to what he wants?"

"Well, he isn't asking for anything unreasonable, Phoebe," Cristina said. "Also, give him my address so he can pick up Xander. I am sure he would want to see him, today. Anyway, I have to go. I am not feeling well." She suddenly got up and bolted out of the courtroom. Everyone stared at her, as she ran out of the room. Owen was immediately concerned. What was wrong with Cristina? He almost got up to chase after her but his lawyer pulled him back down to his seat.

Cristina found the nearest ladies' room, grateful that it was clean, as she entered a stall and brought up her breakfast. The anti-nausea medicine had not helped her at all during the pregnancy. She was glad that in two more weeks, she would be out of the first trimester and maybe, the bouts of nausea would dissipate.

After cleaning herself up, she found her way back home. She collapsed on her sofa and called out the nanny's name. "Betsy, please come," she said, loudly. Betsy came out of Xander's room, when she heard Cristina's voice.

"Yes, Dr. Yang," Betsy said. Cristina told the babysitter to get Xander ready to go out.

"Are you going out, Dr. Yang?" she asked.

"No, but Xander is. His father is coming to pick him up," Cristina said. Betsy was in total shock. She had never heard Dr. Yang mention Xander's father before. She said nothing but did as she was told.

It was an hour later that there was a knock on the door. Cristina answered the door and as was expected, it was Owen.

"Hey," he said, softly.

"Hi, Owen," she replied. "He is ready for you to take him out."

"I just wanted to say thanks," he said. "I am very grateful that you decided to do this."

"I did it mainly for Xander," she said. "I think he would want to know his father."

"But whatever your reason, I am grateful," he said. "Before Xander comes in, can we talk?"

"About what?" she asked.

"About why you never told me about him. Why couldn't you tell me about him when you found out you were pregnant?" he asked. "Why didn't you think you could tell me?"

Cristina stared at him.

* * *

**A/N Please leave your thoughts and comments. I do appreciate them very much.**


	8. Chapter 8 Getting to know Xander

"You can have a seat if you want," she finally said. Owen took a seat on the armchair, facing her. He took a quick look around the rather luxurious apartment. He always knew that Cristina hardly ever cared where she lived because all she needed was a roof over her head and a place to sleep. He had always found that strange since Cristina was brought up in the lap of luxury in Beverly Hills. Having Xander probably changed her attitude about not caring where she lived. She needed a clean, safe, healthy environment and this apartment certainly fit that bill. He wondered who kept it so clean. It certainly wasn't Cristina. Her housekeeping skills were practically non-existent.

It was like if she could read his mind. "There is a cleaning service that comes in twice a week to clean the place up," she said. She had observed him looking around the place and since he was one of the people who was privy to her lack of housekeeping skills, she knew what he was thinking. He looked at her and smiled.

"It is a stunning place," he said.

"I hired a very good interior decorator, who chose all of the furnishings," she said. "I really don't have time to bother with all of this."

He smiled at her. He observed that she still had that wonderful glow that he had noticed in the courtroom. Her skin was flawless. Her hair was so glossy and thick. She was no longer in the suit that she had worn in the courtroom but was in a pair of yoga pants and a t-shirt. Though he was taken by her appearance, he still had not forgotten what he wanted to know from her.

"So are you ready to tell me why you never told me about Xander?" he asked. She let out a breath. She knew that this question was going to come, now that he had found out the truth about Xander.

"Some of the stuff that I told you before about the pregnancy was true, except for the part when I said that you were not the father," she said. She looked across at him. She could see a flash of anger in his eyes when she said that but he controlled it. It was clear that he was in a mood for reconciliation, rather than more conflict.

"When I did find out I was pregnant, I was already past my first trimester. Fourteen weeks, actually. I didn't even know I was pregnant because I had no symptoms unlike…" she started to say. She was gong to say "now" but she stopped herself. She wasn't yet ready to mention her current pregnancy.

"The first person I told was Alex. He was the only person I told for a long time," she said.

"Why him?" Owen asked. He was still feeling hurt about this. How could she tell Alex and not him, who was the father?

"Because Alex is my health proxy," she said. "He had to know in case anything went wrong."

"So why not me? I am the one who contributed half of the genetic material," he said. "I think I had the right to know."

"I didn't tell you because you had just got married after Jordan was born. You had a wife, you had a kid. How were you going to explain a baby that was younger than your own?" she said. "I wasn't going to be the one to destroy your life. You had everything you wanted. A family of your own. A kid of your own. I wasn't going to be the pregnant ex-wife who just comes in and destroys everything. You had everything."

"No I didn't. I didn't have everything that I wanted. What I wanted was you. What I have always wanted was you. Don't you know that I would have exploded everything in my life to be with you? I would have divorced Emma and applied for joint custody of Jordan," he said. "I know that sounds harsh but it is true. You were always the one. You are still the one for me."

"Oh," she said. "But I couldn't have known that. I was still in that mindset when he was born. I had changed my mind about putting him up for adoption and keeping him. Alex said he would keep my secret, as long as I needed," she said. "He's been a great friend. About Alex, he told me about how you've been treating him at the hospital. It is not his fault. It is mine. He was just being loyal to me."

Owen scoffed. If Alex Karev had told him about this, years ago, they would not have been in the current situation. But he put that out of his mind because right now, he was doing his best to be in a reconciliatory frame of mind.

"I am relieved that you didn't put Xander up for adoption," he said. "I am glad that he is still with you." He shuddered at the thought if she had gone through with it.

"Yeah, me too. He is the light of my life," she said. She thought of her son's sunny disposition and smiling face. Just thinking about him brought a smile to her face.

"So what about when Emma died? Didn't you think that you could have told me then?" he asked.

"I did think about doing it. But I figured you would have been so angry at me. It was a decision that I had made when Xander was born and I had planned to keep it quiet," she said. "I also figured that you were grieving and it would not have been an appropriate time."

"You make decisions, Cristina, without taking me into consideration," he said. "Yes, I would have been angry but I would have got over it. You had my son, Cristina. Our son. The joy that would have brought me in the aftermath of Emma's death would have been unimaginable."

"I know," she said. "I know." She sighed, again.

"You did give him my name," he said, with a smile. "When I found out his middle name was Owen, I nearly flipped. I knew you still thought about me."

"I thought that even though he didn't know anything about his father, he would still have your name," she said. "That's why I agreed to the terms of your custody petition, I knew someday, he was going to ask about you and I didn't want to lie to him. I didn't want him to resent me, if he eventually learned the truth. Owen, there is something I need to tell….."

But she was interrupted in finishing her sentence, as Owen suddenly said, "And there he is." Owen had the biggest grin on his face.

Betsy had brought Xander out. He was dressed to go out in his striped red sweater, blue jeans and red sneakers. Betsy had also packed a bag with some of Xander's things and she was carrying that.

"Owen, this is Betsy, Xander's nanny," Cristina said. "Betsy, this is Dr. Owen Hunt, Xander's father." Betsy found herself staring. So this was Xander's dad. She wondered why he had never been around before. She politely shook hands with him.

"Thank you, Betsy," Cristina said. Betsy immediately recognized it as a sign that Cristina wanted her to leave the room. She did so, quickly.

"So how is my big boy?" Owen said, grinning at his son. It was so hard to believe sometimes that this little boy was his son.

"Good," Xander said. "Mommy, are we going out?"

"Not me, you and Owen," she said, pointing to Owen. "Remember him?"

"Yes, he gave me chocolate chip cookies and took me to the bathroom," Xander said. He went and sat on his mother's lap. He didn't want to go out with this stranger, even though he was nice to him and gave him cookies.

"Well, Owen is your daddy, Xander," Cristina said.

"Daddy?" Xander repeated. His eyes were opened wide. He knew the other kids in the playground had daddies but he didn't have one. The only consistent male figure in his life was Uncle Alex and he didn't seem him often, mainly through Skype.

"I have a daddy?" Xander asked, again. He still was trying to understand what it all meant.

"Yes, Xander, I am your daddy," Owen said. He hoped it was a reassuring tone. He didn't want Xander to be scared to go out with him.

"Daddy," Xander said to Owen. It made Owen feel so good to hear his son call him that. He got up from his mother's lap and went to Owen. Owen scooped him up in his arms and gave his son a big bear hug. Xander rested his head on Owen's shoulder.

"Okay, so you are going to go out with your daddy and then he is going to bring you back," Cristina told Xander. She got up and picked up the bag that Betsy had put together. "He has his snacks in here and some toys. He likes apple juice, so you can get that from him. If you are going to get him lunch, you can ask him what he wants. He already knows what he likes."

"Mommy, coming with us?" Xander asked. Cristina shook her head.

"You can come with us, Cristina," Owen said. "I mean I can still spend time with him, even if you are there."

"No, it's okay," Cristina said. "I don't feel all that great. I think I may be coming down with something." Owen remembered how she had bolted out of the courtroom, earlier that day. That was probably when she started to feel ill, he thought.

"Okay, well take care of yourself," Owen said. "Maybe tomorrow when I come from him, you might want to come out with us."

"Well, maybe," she said. "I am also waiting for my lawyer to call me about the custody agreement."

He nodded. He couldn't avoid the fact that he took her to court about Xander. While he felt he had no choice, he was still wary of the negative impact it would have on his and Cristina's relationship. So far, she seemed reasonable.

As he and Xander left, Cristina went to her bedroom. It wasn't a lie that she wasn't feeling so great. It had been a very trying day. Plus the morning sickness was really a total pain. She would be glad for the day when it totally subsided. Her pregnancy with Xander had been so easy. No morning sickness at all. She hadn't told Owen about this pregnancy and she almost told him but Betsy had brought Xander out at that moment. It was just as well, today was about Xander meeting his dad and starting to get to know him.

When Owen brought back Xander in the evening, he was disappointed not to find Cristina around. She was around but was resting in her bedroom. He told Betsy to tell Dr. Yang that he had asked for her. Betsy nodded and said she would do so.

* * *

The next morning, Cristina felt a lot better but she knew that would only be for a short time. She got ready to go to work. She grabbed some lightly buttered toast because she didn't want to give her stomach too much fuel, in case she had to bring it all back up. She drank some tea, as she had sworn off coffee for this pregnancy.

Owen got there, early. He had in his hands, two cups of coffee – one for him and one for Cristina. He had the barista make it the way that she liked. He was surprised when she turned down the coffee and she told him to give it to Betsy.

"I am going in to work today," she told him. "You and Xander have a great time." She left, quickly and Owen handed Betsy the coffee.

"Where's Xander?" Owen asked.

"Still in his room," Betsy said. "You can go in, if you want. It's the last door on the right down the corridor."

Owen went down the corridor and gently opened the door. Xander was already awake and was playing on the floor with his toys. He was still in his pjs and his curly hair looked wild.

"Hey, buddy," Owen said. The little boy got up from the floor and ran to his father. "Daddy!" he shrieked. Owen picked him up and swung him in the air.

Owen could not get enough of his son, as he hugged him. He was going back to Seattle, tomorrow and he was so going to miss his little boy. Maybe, he could persuade Cristina to come for a weekend to Seattle, some time.

"Do you want to go out today, Xander?" he asked.

"No, just stay home and play, Daddy," Xander said. And so they did; it was a full day of play, dancing, drawing, coloring and eating. Owen could not remember when he had a better time. When Cristina came home that evening, she found both of them asleep on the sofa. Xander was lying on Owen's chest. It was the sweetest thing she had ever seen, so she took a picture of it on her phone.

She gently shook Owen awake. He opened his eyes and looked at her like if she was an angel. "Cristina," he whispered her name.

"Hey, I guess you should be heading back to your hotel, now," she said. Owen looked at his watch.

"Where has the time gone?" Owen said. He was about to get up, then he remembered Xander asleep on his chest. He got up slowly. Xander stirred a little bit and Owen carried him to his bedroom.

He sat on the sofa and put on his shoes. From her seat on the armchair, she watched him. "Hey, do you want to me to go grab some dinner and I will bring it back and we can have it here?" he asked.

"Um, no, thanks for asking," she said. "I'm pretty beat from work." Everything he offered her, she turned him down. This was not going well, he thought. She was civil to him but that was it. There was no warmth in her politeness.

"I am leaving tomorrow morning. I just want to pass in and see Xander before I leave," he said. "Also, can you set up a Skype account so I can call him and see his face?"

"Oh, we already have one," she said. "Just look us up."

"Okay," he said. "I will see you, tomorrow morning." She nodded.

"Yes," she said. He left the apartment, feeling deflated. He was making progress with Xander but not with his mother.

* * *

The next morning, he had the taxi drop him off at her apartment. When he got there, they were having breakfast. He had learned his lesson from the day before and had not brought any coffee with him. Both Cristina and Xander were waiting for him. It was early so they were both still in their nightwear.

Owen picked up Xander and hugged him, tightly. "I love you very much, Xander," he said. "I am going to miss you so much."

Xander replied, "Love you, daddy." Owen's heart swelled with pride.

It was all very touching, Cristina thought, to see her son and his father. But then, she started to feel the queasiness again.

"Excuse me," she said, as she hurriedly left the room and ran to the hallway powder room. She closed the door and made a beeline to the toilet, where she brought up the breakfast she had been eating. Owen put down Xander and quickly walked to the bathroom and knocked on the door. Xander followed him, there.

"Cristina," he said. "Are you alright?" But she didn't answer. All he could hear were the sounds of her vomiting.

"Mommy," Xander said, knocking on the door, too.

"Just now, baby," they heard Cristina say. Dr. Hunt and his son listened intently to whatever was going on the other side of the door. Then, finally, the door opened. Cristina came out, looking very pale. She walked out of the bathroom and went to her bedroom, where she fell on her bed. Owen and Xander followed her to her bedroom.

"Do you have a stomach flu, Cristina? Is that why you were sick the other day in court?" he asked. "Do you want me to get you anything? I have a little bit of time before I have to leave for the airport."

She weakly raised her head and observed him. "I don't have a stomach flu, Owen." She then flopped her head back on her pillow.

He was puzzled. "If you don't have a stomach flu, then what's wrong with you?" Suddenly, the light dawned on him.

* * *

**A/N Please leave your thoughts and comments. I do appreciate all of the reviews. So keep them coming. **


	9. Chapter 9 It's Our Baby

Owen sat down on the bed, next to Cristina. He stroked her hair. It had been a while since he had his hands in her hair. The last time was back in her hotel room, when she had come to Seattle. It was a good sign that she didn't pull away, he thought.

"How far gone are you?" he asked. She raised her head.

"What?" she asked. What was he talking about? She wasn't going anywhere.

"How far gone are you?" he repeated. She realized he was talking about her pregnancy. He had figured it out.

"Um…nearly 11 weeks," she said. Owen did the math in his head. It was his, he knew. Not that he really had any doubt.

"Why didn't you tell me?" he said, the joy was evident in his voice. They were going to have another child. Finding about Xander was a miracle but he had missed out on everything about Xander. He had missed the entire pregnancy as well as the first three years of Xander's life. He was grateful that he was getting to know Xander now but the opportunity to be there for this pregnancy was right in front of him. The happiness was overwhelming but was short-lived by her next words.

"So you could take me to court about this one, too?" she snapped. That stung Owen deeply. He did what he had to do so he could be recognized as Xander's father and could be part of his son's life. He looked at Xander, who was staring at both his parents with confusion on his face. Xander could tell that his mommy was upset by the sound of her voice.

"Xander, why don't you go and see what Betsy is doing?" he said to his son in the calmest tone he could muster. They should not fight in front of him. Cristina agreed, as she, too, told Xander to go to Betsy. The little boy walked out of the bedroom and headed to his playroom, where his nanny was. Owen watched to make sure that he went there, before he closed the door of Cristina's bedroom.

"So what? Was your plan to withhold the information about this pregnancy, too, as you did with your last one?" Owen asked. His voice was raised as he was very upset. "The only reason that I took you to court was that you never took any of my calls, so we could discuss Xander. I didn't want it to reach the stage of me filing for joint custody but it was all I could do to get your attention."

He had known that filing for joint custody would have upset her. He knew that was the reason why she had been exceedingly polite to him. There had been no warmth or feeling behind the way she spoke to him. Even though she had conceded to all of his requests, her resentment of him taking her to court was clearly deep-seated.

"Don't you have a flight to catch?" she said, her eyes narrowed and her lips tightened. She did not appreciate his raised voice. "I am sure your daughter and mother are anxious to see you. I don't think that you want to disappoint them. You do have a family in Seattle, who hasn't seen you in days."

"Yes, I have a flight to catch but I can change my plans and take a later flight, Cristina. My mother will certainly understand why I had to change my flight. I will just get a gift for Jordan and that will appease her," Owen said. "But this, right now, is important for us to discuss."

"Owen, what do you want from me?" she said in exasperation. "I mean I gave you what you wanted in terms of Xander. What more do you want?"

"I want to be part of this unborn baby's life," he said. "I want to be there right throughout the pregnancy. I want to be there when he or she is born. And I want to be his or her father, as much as I am the father of Xander and Jordan.

"But that is not all what I want. I want you, too. I want you back in my life. I want us to be together. I want you, me, Jordan, Xander and this baby to be a family. I want Jordan to know her siblings. I want us to be together. I want you. I love you. That's what I want."

Cristina stared at him in silence. He knew she was a stubborn soul and it was often difficult to make her budge. He could tell she was thinking by the way her eyebrows were scrunched up. Finally, she spoke.

"I am not ready to change my life," she said. "Xander and I have a good life here in New York. We both love it here. My work is important and it gives me a lot of self-fulfillment. Xander is well-adjusted to his surroundings and is thriving here. I can take care of myself and Xander." There was an edge of defiance to her tone.

"You are not ready to change your life?" Owen scoffed. "Your life has already changed, Cristina. You are going to have a second baby. This time, I know about it. It's not just you and Xander, anymore. It's me, you, Xander, Jordan and this baby. You can no longer make decisions that are just about you. I have an equal stake in this." Cristina let out a groan, followed by a loud sigh. Deep down, she knew he was right but it was just so hard to accept that. For four years, it had only been about what she wanted and what she thought was best for her and Xander. Now, to actually have to take Owen's input and feelings into consideration, that was going to be hard.

Owen's voice softened, as he continued to speak. "Cristina, we both have to be willing to make concessions to each other, now. It's time for us to move forward as a family." He gave her his Cristina look – the expression he had whenever he looked at her. He loved this woman so much, in spite of all of her faults and her stubbornness. He hoped she could see what he was trying to say.

"Okay," she said. "I will think about it. We can talk more about it, later. Maybe you should go to the airport, now and catch your flight to Seattle. I am sure the hospital needs you since you have been gone for four days. I am sure your family is anxious to see you. I just need some time to think and to be alone with my thoughts."

"Alright," he said. At least, he got her to think about it. "Will you call me? Please."

She nodded and then said, "Yes." He took her face into his hands and kissed her once, twice then three times.

"Thank you," he said. "Goodbye. Just going to give Xander a hug before I leave. Take care of yourself, Cristina. I hope I will be hearing from you, really soon." He left the bedroom and closed the door, leaving Cristina to her thoughts. Though it was muffled, she could still hear him talking to Xander. He told Xander that he loved him very much and he wanted to see him as soon as he could. Cristina continued to think.

* * *

On the flight back to Seattle, Owen was full of hope. To learn that he was going to be a father again was the greatest gift ever. He couldn't wait to tell his mother the news. His mom and Jordan were waiting for him in the terminal. Jordan ran to him, as soon as she saw him.

"Daddy!" she screamed, as she ran to him. Her strawberry blonde pigtails were flying in the air. Owen caught her and swung her in the air.

"Did you bring something for me?" she asked, hopefully.

"Of course, I did," he said, as he dug into his carry-on bag and pulled out a teddy bear, wearing a "I Love New York" t-shirt. "There you are."

Jordan hugged the teddy bear, gratefully. Her daddy always brought her something, whenever he went away. Owen kissed his mother on the cheek.

"Mom, there is a lot I have to tell you," he said. "Well, you already know that Cristina conceded to giving me joint custody of Xander and he is going to start coming to visit from this summer."

"Yes, that is so wonderful, Owen. I am so anxious to meet and get to know my grandson," Mrs. Hunt said. "I am so glad that Cristina saw some sense. I really couldn't believe when you first told me about Xander. I couldn't believe that she kept it from you for so many years."

"Yes," Owen said. "But there is something else. Let's start walking to the car." They all started walking to the parking lot. Owen held Jordan's hand as they walked.

Owen continued, "Mom, we're going to have another baby!"

"What!" his mother exclaimed. "Another baby. You and Cristina? Wow, oh wow. That is the best news ever. I am so happy for you, son. You can be there, right throughout the pregnancy, this time." The tears of joy started flowing down her face. Owen put his arm around his mom.

"Yeah, mom. You are going to get another grandchild," Owen said, happily.

"How far along is she?" Mrs. Hunt said. "We have to get prepared for this. A baby in the house. Is she moving back to Seattle?"

Owen sighed. "She is a little under 11 weeks and having some really bad morning sickness. Here's the thing, mom. We are kinda up in the air about what's going to happen next."

"What are you talking about, Owen? You are a family," his mother said, firmly. "You are going to have two children, together. What is Cristina thinking?"

"Well, her work in New York is important," Owen conceded. "She is doing cutting-edge work that will affect millions of people in the future. She is a genius." He was very proud of her. He could not deny that. Every time he saw a newspaper article or magazine article about her, he was sure to cut it out and put it in his secret Cristina scrapbook. He also kept the journals whenever she published her articles.

"I know, Owen but your family is also important, too," his mother reminded him. His mother was also right, he knew.

* * *

Owen waited for two days for Cristina to call him. He wanted to give her the chance to call him first. He anxiously checked his phone after meetings and after surgery to make sure that she had not called, while he was busy. Every time he checked and there was no call from her, he was deeply disappointed. If a third day passed and he did not hear anything from her, he was definitely going to call. She had enough time to think by then, he reasoned.

On that third day, he was extremely busy. There was a multi-car crash on the highway and there were many accident victims. He found himself in back to back surgeries and was unable to even pick up Jordan from daycare. His mother had to pick her up and take her back to her house.

When he was finally through with his surgeries, he was totally exhausted. He went to an on-call room to grab a nap. He flopped on to the bed and began checking his missed calls. There were no missed calls from Cristina, not that he expected any from her. He sighed. He looked at his watch. Maybe, it was too late to call her, given the differences in the time zones.

Then, he started checking his email messages, replying and deleting. Then, he came to the final message. It was from Cristina Yang. His heart jumped and began beating faster. Finally, something from her; he was gratified.

He eagerly opened the message. There were only five words in the message. It said, "Baby Hunt. Eleven weeks old." He opened the attachment and a single tear rolled down his face. It was an ultrasound picture of his baby. He could clearly see the baby's head and it had one hand in the air. He touched the screen where the baby's hand was. He was giving the baby a high-five.

For Cristina to send this, he knew it was a good sign. He decided to call her, no matter what time it was.

She answered the phone after two rings. "Hey, Owen."

* * *

**A/N Please leave your thoughts and comments. I do appreciate reading them. Keep those reviews coming.**


	10. Chapter 10 A Skype call

Cristina and Owen had a very pleasant conversation that night. She agreed to have Owen call Xander via Skype once a week on Sundays. She said she would inform Betsy to make sure to answer the call, whenever she was not at home. They had also agreed that they would each speak to their respective child about the fact that they were no longer only children, that they were siblings and that another baby was going to come.

They also decided that she would send updates on her pregnancy and sonogram pictures after every doctor's appointment. Other than that, he didn't really push her for anymore. She was including him in the pregnancy and for now, that was good enough. As for the rest of it, he knew that as the pregnancy progressed, there would be time to discuss their issues more. It was going to be a slow process to win Cristina over but he was determined to do it.

It wasn't a very long conversation because it was so late on the east coast but he was glad that at least they talked. Before he fell asleep in the on-call room, he felt that things were starting to improve between the two of them. He felt good about it.

* * *

Before he made his first Skype call to Xander, Owen felt he needed to have a conversation with Jordan about Cristina and his son. It was over Sunday lunch at his mother's house that he decided to talk to her about it. He watched her tackling her lasagna. This was definitely a bombshell that he was going to drop on her.

"Jordan," he started. The little girl looked up and watched her father with love in her eyes. She loved her daddy so much.

"There is something I would like to talk to you about," he said. Jordan was alarmed. Did she do anything wrong? Her eyes started to fill with tears. She thought she was going to be scolded.

"No, no, Jordan, it's nothing bad. I didn't mean to scare you," he said, as he wiped away her tears.

"Okay," Jordan said. She blew her nose and looked at her daddy, solemnly.

"Do you remember Cristina and Xander?" he asked. She nodded. Of course, she remembered the pretty lady and the little boy.

"Yes, from the hospital," she said. "They both have curly hair."

"Well, the little boy, Xander – he is your brother," Owen said. Jordan's blue eyes opened wide. She had always thought she was an only child.

"My brother?" she repeated. Her friend, Stacy had three brothers and didn't like any of them.

"Yes," Owen said. "He is your brother. He is three years old. Cristina is his mother." Jordan took this all in. She knew that Cristina was not her mother but she was Xander's mother. She knew her mother was Emma, who went to heaven, more than a year ago. Did this mean that Cristina was going to be her new mother?

"So, she's going to be my mom, too?" Jordan asked, hopefully. Owen knew that this question was going to be asked.

"Um, no. You already have a mom, Jordan. But I am hoping that Cristina and Xander are going to be a big part of our lives," Owen said. That was the only way he could explain it. He couldn't tell Jordan that Cristina was going to be her new mom. He wasn't even sure about what was going to happen.

"So we are going to talk to Xander on the computer in a bit, so that's why I wanted to tell you this," Owen said. "We want to get to know Xander better. Is that okay with you?"

"Yes," Jordan said. She wanted to know her little brother better. She was sure she would like him better than Stacy liked her brothers.

"There is also something else," Owen said. "Cristina is going to have a baby, too." This time, not only did Jordan's eyes get wide but her mouth also dropped open. She remembered her grandma and her dad talking about a baby at the airport but she was so engrossed in her new teddy bear that she hadn't paid much attention to it.

"A baby! A baby!" she screamed. She was so excited. "Is it a girl?" She so wanted a baby sister that she could dress up like a real doll.

"We don't know what it is as yet," Owen said. "But yes, we are going to have a baby." Jordan got up from her chair and started dancing around the table.

"I am glad that you are so happy," Owen said. He then showed her the ultrasound picture of the fetus with its hand in the air. She was mesmerized.

"Hello, baby," she said, as she gave the picture a kiss.

* * *

On the other side of the country, Cristina was also having her chat with Xander. Xander appeared to be nonchalant about everything. He already knew that Owen was his dad but it hadn't occurred to him that the blonde girl that he met was his sister. He accepted that piece of news, without much of a fuss.

It was when Cristina told him about the baby, he started whooping and hollering. "A baby brother!" he screamed, while jumping up and down.

"Xander, we don't know what it is going to be as yet," Cristina said, trying to dampen down any hope that it might be another boy. "It could be a girl." She didn't want him to be disappointed if it turned out to be a girl.

"A girl? But I already have a sister," he said, pouting. Cristina found it rather interesting that he had already accepted the fact that he had a sister.

"Well, we will see," she said. Then, she heard the sound of the Skype from the computer. "Okay, that's your daddy calling."

They went to the computer and answered the call. Xander settled down into Cristina's lap. When Owen and Jordan's faces appeared on the computer, Xander waved and said, "Hello Daddy." He pressed his face right up to the screen. That made Jordan and Owen laugh. Cristina pulled him back from the screen and put him to sit properly on her lap.

"Say hello to Jordan, too," Cristina urged Xander.

"Hello, Jordan," Xander said. The little girl giggled when he said her name.

"Hello, Xander," she said. "Hello, Cristina." She couldn't stop smiling. She actually had a brother.

"Hey, Xander. Hey, Cristina," Owen said. "How are you guys doing?"

"We are doing fine," Cristina said. "All three of us." Owen grinned because she mentioned the baby.

"Are you still getting sick?" he asked. He remembered that bad bout of morning sickness he had witnessed.

"Actually, it seems to be subsiding," she replied. "Finally coming out of the first trimester. I am so grateful for that."

"That's good," he said. He noticed that the two children were just staring at each other. "Jordan, why don't you tell Xander about your favorite games?"

"Okay, Daddy," she said, as she started this very long-winded description of her favorite games. Owen could see Xander's eyes glazing over, as Jordan continued to speak. He wanted to laugh as he saw that Xander's eyes were starting to close and his jaw was getting slack.

"Xander, anything you want to say to Jordan?" he asked his son, who appeared ready to take a nap.

"Nope," Xander said. "Mommy, I'm feeling sleepy." He rested his head against her chest.

"Okay, I will take him in," Cristina said. Owen and Jordan told Xander goodbye.

"Do you want to wait here until I come back?" Cristina asked Owen. He smiled and nodded.

"Yes, please," he said. As Cristina disappeared into Xander's bedroom, he told Jordan to go help Grandma in the kitchen. He wanted some alone time with Cristina, even though it was by electronic means.

Cristina came back and took her seat in front of the computer. "Where is Jordan?" she asked.

"Oh, she went to help my mom in the kitchen," Owen replied. He didn't mention that he was the one who sent here there. "So how are you really feeling?"

"Honestly, this pregnancy has been kicking my butt. It may be my advanced maternal age. But what I said about the morning sickness subsiding, that part is true. Otherwise, I am doing okay," she said.

"You're not that old," he said. "You're 38 years old. Many women have kids in their forties."

"Thanks for that. But I feel old. I have aches and pains I have never felt before. I don't remember all of this when I was pregnant with Xander, but I guess I was four years younger," she said. "Just a few more months of this, I keep reminding myself." She touched her baby bump, which was still small. Owen wished he could touch it, too. He sighed. She caught his sigh and she immediately knew that he wished he could be there to touch her bump, too.

"Sorry," she said. Then, she remembered something. "Could you tell Alex that I will be scheduling a C-section in mid to late May? Due date is May 25 but I will have the C-section a little earlier. I don't think I could handle natural childbirth, again, even though I have a high threshold for pain."

"Alex? C-section?" he repeated. "Why Alex?" He was a little more than miffed.

"He is my health proxy, Owen, so he can come and be there for the birth. I just need him there, in case anything goes wrong," she explained. "Just like when he was there for Xander's birth."

"What about me?" he asked. "I am the father. Don't you want me there?"

"I just assumed you would be," she said, in a soothing tone. She knew she had riled him, especially with the fact that he had not been there for Xander's birth. Even though they had come to an understanding, it still was a sensitive subject. There was nothing that could be done about it, since it had already happened but that didn't mean it still didn't hurt him.

"Oh, okay," he said. "Alright." He wished that there was movement on her part about their future together. He knew what he wanted. He wasn't so sure about what she wanted.

She turned the subject about work and the conversation started to flow, easily. If they weren't talking about their personal situation, it was much easier to talk about it. Cristina talked about her new research project and he talked about all of the strange things that happened in the hospital.

Cristina agreed that Grey Sloan was a mecca for many strange occurrences. Who knew that one place would attract so many weird things? Though some of the best times of her life had happened there, she also experienced some of the worst times, too. She had met Owen, Meredith and Alex there – people she would never regret having been in her life. There were times she had loved the place and there were times that she hated it, too. She never regretted leaving in the end, except when it came to Owen. But Owen had recognized there was much for her to accomplish out there.

"I see things have not changed there," she said, with a laugh. "Maybe, I will do a surgery again, there, some day. I always had a fondness for OR 2."

"You would?" he said, surprised. He had thought she wouldn't have considered doing that again.

"Yes, some of the weirdest cases pass through Grey Sloan. If there was something that would pique my interest, I would definitely do it," she said. "I think your residents would learn something from it. I did it for Seattle Pres. Why wouldn't I do it for Grey Sloan? I may have sold my interests in the hospital but I still care about it very much."

"That's good to know," he said. "I better go and let you get some rest."

"Yeah, thanks," she answered. "Bye, Owen."

"Bye, Cristina," he said. "Love you." He hung up the connection. His mind began working in overdrive.

He got on his phone, immediately and found the contact that he wanted. "Dr Russell, do you have any extraordinary cardio cases?" he asked.

* * *

**A/N Please leave your reviews. I do appreciate all of them. So keep the reviews coming. **


	11. Chapter 11 Christmas Surprise

Cristina could blame the fact that she was going all out for Christmas because of Owen. He and Jordan had mentioned Christmas and Santa Claus to Xander during one of their Skype sessions. Cristina had rolled her eyes because she knew she wouldn't hear the end of it from Xander. She wasn't a very religious person and was not into the holidays. In fact, she was going to ignore it like she usually did. But now, she couldn't do so anymore.

Xander was three and he was understanding everything, a lot more. It was easy to get away with it when he was two years old and she didn't even have to put up a tree. Now he wanted a Christmas tree and to put up decorations , to see Santa Claus and to buy presents. For days, Cristina could not stop hearing about Christmas.

It was now Christmas week on December 23. Cristina and Xander were going to do some shopping. She had to buy presents for Betsy, Owen and Jordan. In fact, she explained to Xander they had to buy two presents for Jordan – one for her birthday and one for Christmas.

"How come?" Xander asked. He was getting only presents for his Christmas. His 4th birthday was in August.

"Well, that's because Jordan's birthday is December 24. That's Christmas Eve and the next day is Christmas. So we are buying her a birthday present and a Christmas present," she told him. "Besides, you got presents when we were celebrating Chanukah."

It was true that Xander had got presents for Chanukah. Cristina was trying to instill some of her Jewish traditions that she had been taught by her stepfather, Saul. She probably wasn't the best teacher because she wasn't very religious but she wanted him to know a little bit of the religion in which she was brought up.

"Oh," Xander said, thinking it over. "Am I going to get any Christmas presents?"

"I didn't forget about you, Xander. I bought all of your presents, already," she said. "I couldn't buy them when you're with me. Then, you would know what I bought for you."

"What about Santa?" he asked. "Will he still bring me presents?"

"If you've been a good boy, he will bring presents and put them in your stockings," she told him. She hadn't really wanted to teach him about Santa but Jordan had already told him about the fat, jolly guy in the red suit who lived in the North Pole and brought presents for little kids all over the world. He became so excited that someone like that existed that she couldn't tell him it wasn't real. She had never taken him to see Santa before but this year, they waited in line at Macy's Herald Square flagship store, with all of the other parents and kids. There was a point where she got tired of waiting and wanted to leave but all she could see was Xander's excited face, as he got closer and closer to the man with the white beard and rosy cheeks. When they finally got to Santa, Xander was so pleased. He had the biggest grin on his face, when they took their picture. When she saw how happy he was, she knew standing in line was worth it. Yeah, it was definitely all worth it.

They were doing their final bit of shopping and were going to make a trip to the post office to send their presents to Owen and Jordan but the scene at the post office was just pure chaos and the line was very long. She couldn't face that so she decided to abandon her place in the line. She would probably have to spend an hour or so, just standing in line. She figured she would send the gifts the day after Christmas two day priority mail. Surely, the lines would have dissipated by then. She didn't think that Owen and Jordan would mind getting their packages a couple of days later. At least, it would arrive before the New Year. She was glad that she had bought Zola and Sofia's gifts online and had them sent directly to Seattle. Maybe, she should have done the same with Owen and Jordan's gifts.

She went home to relax after a tiring day of shopping. Betsy was leaving to visit her family in Massachusetts. Cristina gave her the present and thanked her for all she had done for Xander during the year. She also gave her a hefty check that included both her December salary plus an end-of-year bonus. The nanny thanked her profusely, then gave Xander a kiss and a hug before going to catch her train to Boston.

It was just going to be Cristina and Xander alone at Christmas in their apartment. She wasn't going to cook and they were going to go out for each of their meals for the day. She lay back on her armchair, glad she was finally done with her shopping. She felt her baby bump. It was a more substantial baby bump because she was now past her 16th week. Ah, yes, she thought, it was going to be a lovely Christmas with just her Xander. She watched the blinking lights on her Christmas tree before falling asleep.

* * *

On the other side of the country, Owen and Jordan were also doing their Christmas shopping. They were shopping for his mom, Cristina and Xander. He was also getting presents for some of the folks at Grey Sloan. The present he had wanted to get for Cristina was an extraordinary surgery. He had consulted with the head of cardio at Grey Sloan, Dr Russell who had informed him that at the moment, there was nothing that would interest a surgeon of the caliber of Dr. Yang. Owen was disappointed but he told Dr Russell to keep him informed of any development. He said that Dr Yang had agreed to do a surgery, once it was a challenging case. He told Dr Russell that it was a teaching hospital and the residents and interns would benefit from seeing a surgeon like Dr Yang in the OR. Dr Russell agreed.

Now, he was shopping for another present for her. It would definitely pale in comparison to a challenging surgery. It was really hard to buy anything for Cristina. She already had everything. She really didn't care much for jewelry. She wore mainly earrings and a watch. Even when they were married, she hardly wore her wedding ring, except for special occasions. So, he found himself looking at earrings for her. He didn't know what to buy. He was driving the salesperson crazy because everything she showed him, he shook his head. He felt a tug on his shirt. He looked down at Jordan. He wondered if she was getting restless.

"Daddy, are you buying me two presents?" Jordan asked.

"Yes, I usually do. One for your birthday and one for Christmas," he said. "I never forget that it is two presents."

"You only need to buy me one present this year. Just one for Christmas," she said, firmly. Owen was surprised. Why would she only want one present?

"Why, Jordan?" he asked. "Why no present for your birthday?"

"Well, I still want a birthday present but not the kind you buy in a store," she said. "I want to go see my brother. That's what I want for my birthday present."

Owen could not believe that she was saying this. "Why, Jordan, that must be the best birthday present ever. Why didn't I think of that?" He swung her up in his arms. He was definitely going to do that. He, too wanted to see Cristina and Xander. He finally decided on a pair of earrings for Cristina and a bracelet for his mom and some toys for Xander. He called the airline, immediately and booked some tickets for himself and Jordan. He also made some arrangements for hotel accommodation but he hoped he wouldn't need them, if Cristina allowed him and Jordan to stay at her apartment.

He called his mother and told her of his plans to go to New York. She was glad since she was going off on a holiday cruise to Mexico and wouldn't have been with them, anyway. She told him it was an excellent idea. He said he had to give credit where it was due and that Jordan had come up with it.

He went home and packed clothes for the two of them. He also packed the presents for Cristina, Xander and Jordan in one of the suitcases. He was getting really excited. He called a taxi, which came to pick them up. He dropped off his mom's present at her house. She hugged both Owen and Jordan, telling them that she hoped they have a lovely Christmas.

"Good luck," she whispered to her son, since she knew the visit was going to be a surprise. Sometimes, surprises don't go as planned. But Owen was confident. This was going to be one of the best Christmases ever.

The taxi took them to the airport and as he and Jordan took their seats on the plane, she expressed the concern that maybe, Cristina and Xander won't be happy to see them.

"I don't think so, Jordan," he said. "I am sure that they would love to see us." They both settled down for a nap on the plane. By the time they got to JFK, they were both feeling a little bit frazzled. They had slept on the plane but it wasn't a restful sleep. They got their luggage and made their way out of the airport. He took the first taxi he saw and gave the driver Cristina's address. They were on their way.

* * *

Cristina woke up and found herself feeling cold. She noticed that Xander was asleep on the sofa, wrapped up in a blanket. She had forgotten to put the heat on, when she came home. Now the apartment was freezing. She put the heat on but lighting the fireplace might also warm the place up. She hadn't used it all season and this was the first time she was going to use it. She tried but it wasn't turning on. She knew what to do. She would call her neighbor, Darby. He would know what to do. He was one of those fix-it-all geniuses. She called him and he promptly came over.

"I think you may have a clog in your line," he said. "So you haven't used it at all for this season? I think we may need to clean it. I can do it for you."

"Can you?" she said. "That would be so wonderful." As Darby got to work, cleaning the fireplace, she went to make some hot chocolate in the kitchen. That would help to warm their bodies, she thought. In the meantime, Xander had awakened to the sound of Darby cleaning the fireplace. He went to the kitchen and saw his mother, there. He went and hugged her legs.

"Hey, baby. You are up. Want some hot chocolate?" she asked. ruffling his curly hair.

"Yesh," Xander said. "Can you put some marshmallows, too?"

"Sure," she said. "Why don't you have a seat at the table and I will bring it for you." Xander sleepily walked to the kitchen table and sat down. Cristina brought him his hot chocolate with marshmallows and she sat down herself with her own cup. She called out to Darby and asked if he wanted his hot chocolate, now. Darby replied he would take it, after he was done cleaning the fireplace.

She and Xander were starting to warm up with the hot chocolate in their bodies and the heat kicking in to make the apartment a lot more toasty. Mother and son sat in comfortable silence, drinking their hot chocolate. When they were through, she made another hot chocolate for Darby. He should be almost through with the fireplace, she reckoned. Then, she heard a knock on her front door. Darby would get that, she thought.

"I'll get it," Darby shouted from the living room.

Owen and Jordan stood on the other side of the door, waiting for Cristina to answer it. As the door swung open, he had a great, big grin on his face, which quickly disappeared when he saw this burly man, answer the door. For a moment, he was at a loss for words. Who was this guy?

"Can I help you?" the man asked. Owen finally found his voice.

"Um, I am not sure if I have the right apartment," Owen started. "Dr Cristina Yang?"

"Uh, yes, you have the right apartment," the man said. "Come on in. Your little girl looks tired." Owen stepped into the apartment, holding Jordan's hand and dragging their suitcases.

"Thank you," Owen said. Who was this guy? Darby went back to cleaning the fireplace. Was he a handyman? Was he some guy she was dating? Owen shook his head and put that last idea out of his mind. No, that definitely couldn't be, he tried to reassure himself.

"Is Cristina around?" Owen asked, hopefully. He needed her to be here to tell him who this guy was.

Cristina came out of the kitchen, with Xander following her. She was carrying a giant mug of hot chocolate with her.

"Hey, Darby, here is your hot chocolate," she said. Then, she noticed Owen and Jordan sitting on the couch. Her mouth dropped open. Xander spotted them, too.

"Daddy!" he screamed, as he ran to Owen. Owen got up and scooped him up in his arms.

"My boy, my beautiful boy!" he said, hugging the child, tightly. Cristina was still frozen to the spot in which she stood.

"Owen, what are you doing here?" she said, her voice betraying the fact that she was still in shock.

* * *

**A/N Please leave your thoughts and comments. I do appreciate them very much. Please keep the reviews coming.**


	12. Chapter 12 Jordan's birthday

Owen put Xander down and started a little nervously. "Um, as you know Jordan's birthday is tomorrow and she said that she wanted to see her brother for her birthday, so we booked a flight today and came to see you for the holidays." He knew that Cristina was not too fond of surprises so he was a little anxious about how she would react to their sudden appearance.

"Oh," Cristina said, putting down the mug of hot chocolate. "That was a very nice present. Hey, Jordan, nice to see you." She came forward, bent down and gave the little girl a hug and a kiss. Jordan wrapped her arms around Cristina's neck. "I am very happy to see you. Xander, did you say hello to your sister?"

"Hello, Jordan," Xander said. He gave Jordan a tight hug. Though neither Cristina nor Owen said anything, it warmed their hearts to see the two children in an embrace.

"Hello, Xander," Jordan said. "I have come to see you."

Cristina turned to Owen and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "It must have cost you quite a bit to get plane tickets at this late stage."

"Yes," he said, as he watched his two children chat with each other. "It is worth it." He wasn't satisfied with that peck on the cheek and lifted her chin up and gave her a smooch on the lips.

"Ahem," Darby suddenly said. He was done with cleaning the fireplace and wanted them to notice he was still in the room.

"Oh, Darby, I am so sorry," Cristina said. "I forgot to introduce you. This is Dr Owen Hunt, Xander's dad. Owen, this is Lewis Darby, my next door neighbor. He is a fix-it genius and I had asked him to help me out with this gas fireplace. I wasn't getting it to light at all."

"Aw, you make me blush, Cristina. I am not a fix-it genius. I just like to tinker with things," he said. He turned to Owen. "I would shake your hand but my hands are a little dirty. Let me just go wash them and I will be back to enjoy my hot chocolate." He went to the powder room to wash his hands. Owen was relieved to find out that the man was just her next door neighbor.

"Speaking of hot chocolate, do you and Jordan want any? I know it must be cold outside," Cristina said.

"Yes, please, with marshmallows," Jordan said, hopefully.

"I wouldn't mind a cup, too," Owen said. "No marshmallows, though."

"Coming right up," Cristina said. "Jordan, do you want to come with me to the kitchen?" Jordan happily followed Cristina to the kitchen. Darby returned and picked up his cup of hot chocolate. He took a sip.

"Ah, that feels good," he said. He came forward and put out his hand for Owen to shake. "Now I can shake your hand." The two men solemnly shook hands. "So you're a doctor, too. Surgeon like Cristina?"

"Yes," Owen confirmed. "But I am a trauma surgeon and chief of surgery at Grey Sloan Memorial in Seattle."

"Oh, no wonder I haven't seen you around," Darby said. "Must be hard to live in separate cities."

"Yes," Owen admitted. "Extremely hard." He ruffled Xander's hair. Darby drained the last of his hot chocolate.

"Tell Cristina I've gone. The missus is probably waiting for me," Darby said.

"Thank you for helping Cristina out," Owen said. "I am grateful."

"It's no problem," Darby said. "It's just her and Xander. So I have no problems helping them out." With a wink and a wave, he left the apartment.

Cristina and Jordan emerged from the kitchen. Jordan had her own cup of hot chocolate while Cristina was carrying Owen's mug. She handed it to him and he took a sip.

"So Darby's gone," she noticed.

"Yup, I thanked him and he left," Owen said. He watched as she did all of the steps to turn on the fireplace. When it came on, she breathed a sigh of relief.

"It's been fixed," she said. "Hurray for having Darby around." She turned around and noticed that Owen had already drunk all of his hot chocolate.

"Wow, you must have been cold," she said.

"Yes, the winds outside were a little strong," he admitted. "I am not looking forward to going back out there to get to our hotel."

"Oh, you don't have to do that," Cristina said. "You can stay here." Those were the words that Owen was waiting to hear. But his joy was tempered by her next statement. "Betsy has gone for the holidays to see her family in Massachusetts. You and Jordan can share her room. It has a lovely queen-size bed in there, enough for the two of you." Those were not the words that he wanted to hear. He wanted to share her bedroom and have Jordan in the other room. He swallowed his disappointment and accepted her offer of accommodation. She showed him the way to Betsy's bedroom.

"I will bring in some fresh sheets and towels," she told him, which she did. He watched as she changed the sheets.

"Thank you," he said. "Jordan and I will be very comfortable, here." He took out his and Jordan's Christmas stockings as he wanted to hang them on the fireplace. As he hung them up, he noticed there was only one stocking there with Xander's name on it. There was none for Cristina.

"Where is your stocking?" he asked her. It looked really weird with only three stockings on the fireplace and there was one person without a stocking.

"Oh, I didn't buy one for myself," she said. "It doesn't really matter." He took mental note of the fact that she did not have a stocking.

"By the way, I ordered pizza for dinner," she said. "I just ordered it so it should be here in a bit."

"Thanks," he said. "I think we're hungry."He looked around. "Where's Jordan and Xander?"

"Oh, they are in his room. He is showing her his toys," Cristina said. "Oh, by the way, if you have any presents to put under the tree, you can put them." He went back to the room and took out the presents for Jordan, Xander and Cristina. As he placed them there, he did notice her gifts to him and Jordan, under the tree. He smiled. He didn't stop smiling as he looked at her.

"Hey, I was thinking that Jordan and I could go out tomorrow and see if we can get a cake for her birthday," Cristina said. "There is a lovely bakery about three blocks away. They have the most amazing cakes. Of course, it is too late now to get any special cakes, so I was thinking that we could get her favorite type of cake and just have them put a birthday greeting for her."

That made him smile even more. "Yes, that would be really great," he said. "Thank you, Cristina." Just then, there was a knock on the door.

"That's the pizza guy," Cristina said, digging into her purse to get the cash.

"I'll get it," Owen said. He opened the door and paid the delivery guy. He noted that it was a family size pizza.

"Hey, kids," Cristina yelled. "Pizza is here." There was the thundering of little feet as Jordan and Xander emerged from the bedroom, screaming in glee. Cristina found plates and glasses and laid them out on the table. Owen found the juice in the fridge and poured it out in the glasses. Cristina tucked napkins on to the front of each child's shirt.

"I am not going to spend the holidays, trying to remove oily, cheesy stains off anybody's shirts," she grumbled. "Remember Betsy is not here and it will be me, having to do the laundry." Owen had to laugh and the kids took his lead and laughed, too. This is what Owen wanted – their family eating dinner together.

* * *

It was Christmas Eve and Jordan's birthday. Owen woke up and found Jordan stuck under his arm. He removed himself from the bed, went to the bathroom to brush his teeth. He figured he would make breakfast for the four of them. He left quietly, so as not to wake Jordan. He went to the kitchen and took out some eggs and refrigerator. He figured he should be grateful that Betsy left a well-stocked fridge and pantry. Otherwise, it would have been bare, as he knew his ex-wife well.

He decided to make cheese omelets with mushrooms for them. He was going to make coffee for himself, tea for Cristina and cocoa for the young ones. He wanted everything ready before everyone woke up. He finished the omelets and placed them on the plates. It was the smell of the coffee that brought Cristina to the kitchen.

"Oh, my God, Owen, the smell of the coffee, I am dying here," she said. "I haven't had coffee in a while. Not since the day I found out I was pregnant."

"I made tea for you," he said, brightly. She groaned. There was to be no caffeine for her.

"So why are you so chipper this morning?" she asked.

"I am happy. Just making breakfast for all of us," he said. "Do you know that you have a ton of food in this house? I am certain that is not your doing. Betsy left you well prepared for the holidays."

"I don't know why she did that," Cristina said, flopping on to a chair at the table, while Owen brought the omelet for her. He brought the tea pot for her. She made herself a cup of tea and pointed out that she had just planned to go out for all of her meals on Christmas day and for all of the other days, she was going to order delivery. Owen shook his head. She had not changed with her lack of culinary skills.

"Okay, I was thinking that we could do a penne rustica for dinner tonight. It's Jordan's birthday and she loves pasta," he said. "Is that okay with you? I think we have all of the ingredients."

"Great, awesome. Xander loves pasta, too," she said. There was the light patter of small feet, as Jordan came into the kitchen, rubbing her eyes.

"There is the birthday girl," Cristina said. "Come let me give you a hug." Jordan went and gave Cristina a hug, before going to her father. He gave her a kiss on her head and asked if she was hungry. She nodded, so he laid out an omelet on a plate for her and made her a cup of cocoa.

"Only one more person to join us," Owen said. That little person joined them, five minutes later, ready to eat his breakfast.

After breakfast, Cristina told Owen to get Jordan ready as they were going to get the cake for her birthday. Jordan was very excited as Owen dressed her to go out. He waited until they left before he turned to his son.

"Xander, let's go out and get some shopping done," he said. He dressed Xander and together, they hit the stores. First thing to get was a stocking for Cristina. He couldn't get one with her name on it but he did get one with a C on it. That should do, he thought. Then, he bought a whole lot of stuffers for her stocking. He also bought a little bit for himself, since he didn't want his stocking to look empty. He was pretty sure that Cristina had already bought the stuffers for Xander's stocking and he had brought all of his stuffers for Jordan's own. Then, he went back to the apartment and put away all that he had bought into his room. Cristina and Jordan had not yet returned and he was glad about that. He didn't want Cristina to see what he had bought for her.

* * *

Jordan and Cristina had indeed walked the three blocks to the bakery. It was Cristina's favorite bakery, which she had discovered when she first moved to New York. Jordan's eyes lit up when she saw all of the cakes.

"Can I have anything?" she asked, her blue eyes were round like saucers.

"Yup, anything," Cristina said. Jordan's eyes were drawn to a three layer deep dark chocolate cake with vanilla buttercream frosting. There was a picture of a cut slice of the cake, so Jordan knew what it looked like on the inside.

"That one?" Cristina asked. Jordan nodded, happily.

"Alright, can we have that cake?" Cristina said to the salesperson. "Can you write on it 'Happy birthday, Jordan'?" Cristina was surprised that Jordan chose that cake. She would have thought a child this young would have chosen a cartoon character or something like that. Not that she minded. She really wasn't looking forward to eating a Minnie Mouse cake. Jordan had sophisticated taste and Cristina was glad.

After getting the writing done on the cake, they started walking back to the apartment. Cristina stopped to go inside a store. She realized that while Owen probably had bought stuffers to put in Jordan's stocking and she had bought stuffers for Xander, he probably hadn't bought stuff to put in his own stocking. She thought that she would fill his stocking, too, so she started buying things that she thought he would like. Then, they headed back to the apartment to find Owen and Xander sprawled out in front of the television, together.

"We got the cake! We got the cake!" Jordan screamed, happily. Cristina handed Owen the cake and told him to put it in the kitchen.

"We will have the cake after dinner, tonight," Owen told Jordan. "We will put the candles and light it up for you."

"Yes, yes, yes!" Jordan shrieked again. In the meantime, Cristina quietly put all of the stuff that she had bought for Owen in her bedroom. She would stuff his stocking, later when everyone was asleep.

For dinner, Owen had indeed cooked his pasta rustica for the family. Cristina didn't know that half of these ingredients existed in her pantry and refrigerator. It was delicious, she told him. Then, finally, Owen brought out the cake with the lighted candles on it.

Jordan was so excited. She blew out the candles and silently mouthed her wish. She and Xander were going to cut the cake together, while their proud parents took what seemed like millions of pictures. It was a bit messy but the two children managed to finally cut the cake. The cake was indeed scrumptious, as everyone had a huge slice of the cake. Cristina also gave Jordan her birthday present. It was an American Girl doll with strawberry blonde hair. Jordan said the doll was so beautiful and she gave both Cristina and Xander hugs. Owen felt his eyes get a little moist at the scene that he had just witnessed.

The children decided that Santa would probably like a piece of the cake and they left a slice with a glass of milk for the jolly old guy in the red suit.

Then, it was time to go to bed, at least for the two children. Cristina and Owen finally took out the stocking stuffers for their respective children and began putting them all in. These were Santa's gifts to the children. Owen threw in a CD and a key ring into his own stocking. He told her it would look weird if it didn't have anything in it. She nodded, knowingly.

They said good night to each other and retired to their respective rooms. At 12 midnight, Cristina came out and silently stuffed Owen's stocking with all of the things that she had bought for him. It looked a little overstuffed but that was okay, she thought. She ate as much as she could of the slice of cake and drank some of the milk. She then slipped quietly back to her bedroom.

At 1 a.m., Owen made his way out to the living room to the fireplace. He had already put everything he had bought for Cristina in the stocking he had got for her. It was a little overstuffed but that was okay, he thought. Then, he saw it. His stocking was filled to the brim and overflowing. There was only one person who could have done that. He grinned and shook his head. She didn't want him to have an empty stocking. Gosh, he loved that woman, so much. He hung up the stocking with the C on it right next to his own. He finished off the slice of cake and drank out the rest of the milk. He brushed his teeth and then went back to bed.

The movement made Jordan stir. She opened her eyes. "Daddy?" she said.

"Yeah, baby, go back to sleep," he said. "You have to sleep or Santa won't come."

"Oh, okay. Daddy, do you know what my birthday wish was?" she said. "I wished that we could all stay together. You, me, Cristina and Xander."

"Yeah, me, too," he said, as he kissed her on the cheek. "I know how you feel."

* * *

**A/N Please leave your thoughts and comments. I do appreciate when you take the time to do so. **


	13. Chapter 13 Christmas

Xander rubbed his eyes. His room was still dark but there were streams of light coming through his window. He was pretty sure it was morning. But not any ordinary morning, it was Christmas morning. Woo-hoo, the little boy thought, as he crawled out of his bed. He opened his door and walked to the living room. It was still and quiet. No one had got up as yet.

He went to his mommy's room and he climbed up into her bed. He lay next to her and said, "Mommy." She did not stir.

"Mommy," he said, a little louder, shaking her a bit. She opened her eyes.

"Xander," Cristina said. "What are you doing here?"

"It's Christmas morning, Mommy," he told her. "You need to get up. We have to open our presents and to see what Santa has brought for us." Cristina smiled at him. She needed to wake herself up and went to the bathroom. She looked at herself in the mirror, still looking very bleary-eyed. She washed her face to wake herself up. When she was through, she walked back out, where a very jumpy Xander was still waiting for her on her bed.

"Hurry up, Mommy," he screamed.

"Shush, child. Not so loud. Don't you think that we should wake up your father and sister?" she asked.

"Okay," Xander agreed. They left Cristina's bedroom and walked down the corridor to Betsy's room. She knocked lightly. Xander pressed his ear against the door to hear if anyone was making any movements. He heard nothing so he shook his head. So, Cristina knocked again. This time, Xander definitely heard footsteps. Rather heavy footsteps, too. So he knew that it was his dad.

Owen opened the door. "Hey," he said, observing Cristina and Xander. Cristina immediately noticed his bulging muscular arms, as he was wearing a t-shirt. She felt a longing in her loins. She hadn't had sex since the last time they were together in Seattle. That was a little more than four months ago. She realized how much she missed it, especially her hormones were driving her crazy with sexual desire. She tried not to stare.

"Um, Xander wanted to open his presents," she said. "I thought we should open all of our presents together. Plus I wanted to take pictures of them opening their presents."

"That would be great," he said. "Let me get Jordan up and we will be right out. I am surprised that she hasn't got up as yet." He closed the door, while Xander and Cristina went to the kitchen. She made herself a cup of tea and Owen a cup of coffee. The kids would be too excited at the moment, so she would make their hot chocolate when they were ready for breakfast. But right now, she needed a tiny pick me up. The tea would be just perfect.

"We're out here," Owen yelled from the living room. She and Xander eagerly made their way out of the kitchen. She had the two cups in her hand and handed him the cup of coffee.

"Okay, where do we start first?" she said. "Let's do the presents under the tree and then we will do the stockings from Santa." She looked across at the fireplace and to her surprise, there were four stockings on the mantel, not three. She saw the overflowing large stocking with the letter C on it. Clearly, that was her own. For a moment, she thought there really was a Santa Claus. Don't be ridiculous, she told herself in her head.

She looked across at Owen who had the most massive grin on his face. He obviously was the one who had put it there. She mouthed the words, "Thank you." He mouthed back, "Thank you, too." She knew that was because she had stuffed his stocking, too. She smiled because they both had done something great for each other.

"Okay, so let's open one present each," Owen said. Jordan chose the present from Cristina and Xander, Owen chose the present from Cristina, Xander chose the present from Owen and Jordan and Cristina chose the present from Owen. There were other presents under the tree but those were the most important. Both Owen and Cristina were ready for their cameras as the kids started to open their presents.

Jordan's present turned out to be a large white teddy bear which was a polar bear. It was soft and fluffy. There was no way that Cristina could give Xander that because he would have dirtied it in two seconds but Jordan was another matter. "Thank you, thank you," she screamed, running to give Cristina a hug.

"You're welcome, Jordan," Cristina said. Xander was struggling to get the paper off his present.

"Let me help you, Xander," Owen said, tearing off the paper. The tiny boy gasped when he saw what it was.

"Choo-choo train, Mommy," he screamed. He gave his dad a big hug. Owen wrapped his arms around the small boy. It felt good to have him in his arms.

"Yes, I can see that. That is a wonderful gift, Owen," she said. She then started to open her present. It was a small box, so she knew it was jewelry. She opened the box to reveal a pair of emerald earrings, encircled in diamonds.

"Wow, Owen, you shouldn't have. This is really too much," she said.

"No, it isn't," he said. "It's not quite what I wanted to give you but for now, it will do. I am still hoping to get that other thing for you."

"I don't know what it is that you wanted to give me but it must be really something because these earrings are exquisite. Thank you so much," she said. She went across to where he was and gave him a kiss on the lips. He was gratified that she initiated that kiss.

"Okay, so let's see what you've given me," he said. It was a history and picture book about doctors in the military and the role they played in defending their country. There were lots of interviews with medical personnel who served in the different wars. She knew that his time in the service meant so much to him. He always said that when your country asks you to serve, you take up that call. Serving had cost him a lot, especially with the PTSD he suffered but if he was asked, he would admit that he had never regretted it.

"Thank you," he said. This time, it was he who went to her and gave her a kiss. His kiss was a little more passionate than hers, as he also gave her a little bit of tongue. She didn't pull back and she accepted his tongue. She could feel the stirring inside of her. Then, she realized, it wasn't her sexual desire. Someone was definitely stirring inside of her. It was early but she could feel the flutter. She gasped.

"What?" Owen asked.

"I could feel it," she said. "The baby inside of me. It's like a flutter. It's a tiny thing but I could feel it. I am feeling it earlier than with Xander. I guess I know now what it is, the second time around." She took his hand and placed it on her stomach. As much as he tried, he couldn't feel anything. She was disappointed that he couldn't feel it but he wasn't. Even though he couldn't feel it, he was happy that she was the one who took his hand and placed it on her stomach. Her stomach was definitely rounder and fuller than he remembered. Cristina always had a flat stomach and to feel the curve of it was incredible.

"Maybe he or she will move for me, a little bit later," he said, hopefully.

"Maybe," she said. "I want you to feel it. It is pretty amazing." He nodded. He already knew what it felt like when Emma was having Jordan but he definitely wanted to feel the movement of his child with Cristina. After all, he had missed her entire pregnancy with Xander. It was good to hear her say that she wanted him to experience it.

Even though she was sending him updates and regular ultrasound pictures, he still felt he was missing out on this pregnancy, too. The entire breadth of the country separated them. Still, he knew they had a number of issues that they hadn't yet worked out.

After the children worked through all of their presents, it was time to check what Santa had brought them. Owen took down the stockings and handed each of them their own stocking.

"Oh, you are so full of surprises," she said, as he gave her the stocking with the C.

"What about you?" he countered. "I threw in a CD and a key ring into it but I was really shocked to see my stocking filled to the brim, when I came out of the room, last night to put up your stocking."

"Well, great minds think alike," she said, laughing, as they each got down to checking what "Santa" had brought. As they took out the items, they were taken aback about how well they knew each other with the things they had put in it. Xander and Jordan were pretty much pleased with everything they got, which were mainly toys and snacks and candy to eat. They were both extremely satisfied, that is, until Jordan pulled out a small toy truck from the bottom of her stocking. From the time Owen saw it, he knew he had made a mistake. He was supposed to put that truck into Xander's stocking and had absentmindedly shoved it into Jordan's stocking.

Xander stared at the truck and wanted it. "Let me see," he said, pulling it away from Jordan. She tried to pull it back from him. But even though he was the younger child, he was a bit brawnier than she was and steadfastly held on to the toy. Jordan got mad, really mad. She gave him a shove. Xander was not going to take that. He tossed the truck to one side and threw himself at her. It all happened so fast that the children were already rolling on the ground by the time the adults got involved. They were both crying and punching each other at the same time.

Owen grabbed Xander off of Jordan and Cristina picked Jordan from off the floor. Both children were howling now, as they cried on their respective adult's shoulder. They rocked them until the sobbing subsided.

Cristina and Owen sat down on the sofa, with Jordan on Cristina's lap and Xander on Owen's.

"We have to talk about this," Owen said. "We don't want any fighting today. It is Christmas and we should be happy that we are all together."

"But he took my truck and wouldn't give it back," Jordan protested.

"She pushed me," Xander yelled, still very unhappy about the situation

"Alright, alright," Cristina said. "We are all aware of the fact that everyone had a part in it. Xander, you shouldn't have taken Jordan's truck."

"Jordan," Owen admonished his daughter. "You shouldn't push your brother. I know this is new, having a brother but we have to get along. Now, I want both of you to say sorry to each other."

There was silence.

"Come on," Cristina said. "Or we won't have breakfast this morning." Neither child wanted to skip breakfast since they were both hungry.

"Sorry," Xander said.

"Sorry," Jordan said.

"Good, now we can get some breakfast. I am going to cook," Owen said. He got up and placed Xander on the ground. Cristina did the same for Jordan. Everyone headed to the kitchen, while Owen got busy with making breakfast. The two children sat quietly at the table, exchanging glares with one another.

"I think we handled that very well," Cristina said, as she took out the dishes to lay out on the table.

"I think so, too," he said. "It is a big adjustment for them, seeing that they have to get used to the fact that they are no longer only children. Also good with the baby on the way."

"Yup. Was the truck for Xander? Though I do think there is nothing wrong with a girl getting a toy truck," Cristina said.

"Yes, it was," Owen admitted. "But we will leave it as it is. I will get him another truck."

"Okay," Cristina said. The rest of the day was pleasant enough. Cristina actually helped Owen to prepare their lunch, even though she didn't do any of the cooking or baking. She helped with the preparation stuff, since they both knew that her culinary skills did not exist. He praised her for her efforts.

By dinner, all of the troubles of the morning had been forgotten. Xander and Jordan were getting along, again and were playing with each other, once more. After dinner, the children were bathed and tucked in bed, Cristina and Owen sat on the couch in the darkened living room, watching the Christmas tree lights and drinking hot chocolate. She rested her head on his shoulder while he put his arm around her.

"Oooh," she said, raising her shirt and grabbing his arm to feel her bare stomach. "The flutter is back." At first, Owen could not feel anything. Then, he felt it. It was almost imperceptible but he felt it. He looked at her, with wonder in his eyes.

"I felt it," he said, with a chuckle. She grabbed his face and kissed him, softly.

* * *

**A/N Please leave your thoughts and comments. I do appreciate them. I haven't been writing for the past couple of days because I have been feeling a little bit depressed. So this is what I wrote.**


	14. Chapter 14 The Day after Christmas

**A/N A little bit of mature content**

They made out on the couch like teenagers and though, they could have taken it further, they didn't. The last time they were together, they had jumped into bed, really quickly. Their chemistry and their attraction to each other had overwhelmed them to the point that they were not able to resist each other. And even though Owen had hoped that would have the beginning of their new start, it turned out not to be.

What had happened instead was turmoil and confusion with him finding out Xander's true parentage, the drama in the courtroom and Cristina's deep-seated resentment of him. But who would have even imagined their one-time tryst in Seattle would have resulted in the greatest gift? The conception of the baby seemed to be the catalyst that would bring them back together. At least, that is what he hoped.

He didn't want it to be like how they rushed it the first time. This time, he was willing to wait for her. He wanted her to be sure and that is why he was willing to take it slower. He could feel the urgency of her kisses and it could have swayed him but he was determined that this time, it was going to work. He and Cristina have had too many up and downs in their relationship. She was the love of his life. He had always known that but this time, it seemed that they might really have a chance to make it.

He could feel her small hands going under his shirt and massaging his chest. He caught himself and gently pulled her hands out.

"No," he said, firmly.

"What?" she shrieked. "What do you mean 'no'? I am so ready for this. I am pregnant so everything is on a heightened state of alert, Owen Hunt." She scoffed then gave him the pleading eyes. "Please, please."

"No, this is what got us in trouble the last time," he said.

"The baby? You think that's trouble," she said. She pulled back from him.

"NO! The baby is the greatest thing ever," he said. "We just jumped into bed when you came to Seattle. We threw caution to the wind. We didn't really think about the consequences afterwards. We had too many secrets between us which led to distrust and hostility and I don't want to happen, again. I want us to do this right. So we are going to take this at a more tepid pace. I seriously want to sleep with you, Cristina. I really, really do."

Cristina groaned and then let out a really big sigh.

"So how much longer am I supposed to wait?" she asked. "As I have told you, I am woman with raging pregnancy hormones." She paused. "What about if I get my desires fulfilled elsewhere? What about that, Owen? You and I can take it slow while I get my jollies elsewhere." Owen shook his head. He knew she was kidding.

"Are you crazy?" he said, as he gave her a kiss. "There is no freaking way that I would let that happen, especially since it is my kid in there. I don't think he or she would appreciate some weird guy's penis in there, bumping against his or her head. As the baby's father, I am never going to allow that. Never, Cristina."

Crisitina screamed in mock agony.

"Keep it down," he said. "Tell you what? I will do something for else for you." He slipped off her knit pants and her panties. The bottom half of her was totally bare.

"I know you are not going to give me sex, so what are you going to do?" she asked.

"There are other kinds of sex, Cristina," he said, as he bent down and gave her a lick on her clitoris.

"Oh, God," she said. "Don't tease like that. Remember everything is on a heightened state of alert."

"I am not teasing," he said, as he went down and feasted on her, using his tongue, lips and fingers to bring her to orgasm. She moaned when she came.

"Thank you," she said. "My body has been craving that for a while."

"It was my pleasure," he said. He re-dressed her and led her to her own bedroom. He gave her a kiss on the forehead. "I will see you in the morning."

"So you're really doing this? This moderate pace?" she asked, hoping that he would change his mind.

"Yes, I am," he said. He squeezed her hand and walked back to his bedroom. Though when he had first arrived in New York, he had wanted to share her bedroom with her. But now, he felt it was better that they were not. They could work it out on a slower pace, even though, they physically wanted each other as much as before.

Cristina lay on her bed and touched herself. She hadn't had an orgasm like that in a while and it was such a great release. Owen really had an amazing tongue, she thought. Talent like that could not be wasted. She grinned to herself, as she hugged her pillow and fell asleep in a really good mood.

* * *

She woke up the next morning, still feeling really good about things. She crawled out of bed and headed straight to the bathroom and watched herself in the mirror, She noticed she had a hickey on her neck. "That is for teenagers!" she said to herself. After using the bathroom, she shuffled out of her bedroom and into the kitchen. She wasn't surprised to see Owen there, already working away in the kitchen, preparing breakfast for his family.

"I am doing waffles today with syrup and fruit toppings," he said.

"I didn't even know that I had a waffle maker," she said. "I always thought that Betsy bought those waffles she gave us." Owen shook his head and laughed.

"I am pretty sure that you don't even know half of the appliances that you have in this kitchen. You are very well equipped," he said. "You can do tons of stuff in here."

"I guess," Cristina said. "I gave Betsy free rein in the kitchen to do whatever she wanted. I just told her that I wanted her to feed Xander, properly."

"Speaking of Xander," Owen said. "Where are he and my blonde daughter? I have the waffles ready and I want them to have them hot. Can you wake them up while I set the table?"

First, Cristina woke up Xander, picked him up and deposited him at the kitchen table. Then, she went and got Jordan, who wrapped her arms around Cristina's neck. Cristina carried the girl to the kitchen table, where Xander had already started on his waffles.

"Here is your tea, Cristina," Owen said, as he handed her a large cup of tea. "I am having tea, too, in solidarity with you. I can't torture you with the smell of coffee."

"Thank you for small mercies," she said. Everyone sat down and quietly ate their breakfast in comfortable silence.

"When are we leaving, Daddy?" Jordan suddenly piped up.

"Around lunchtime, Jordan. We will take a taxi to the airport and then we get on the plane," Owen told her. "I just have to pack up our stuff and gifts this morning."

"Leaving?" Cristina said in alarm. This was the first time she had heard about this.

"Yes, I booked our return flight back to Seattle on the day after Christmas," he said. "We didn't want to impose on you longer than that. We wanted to spend Christmas with you and Xander." He ruffled the boy's curly hair. He looked across at her. He could see that she wasn't taking it well.

"You didn't say anything before," she said. She stabbed at her waffle with her fork. She was not happy.

"Well, I thought it was kind of clear that we came only for Christmas," Owen said. "I thought you understood that."

"Oh," Cristina said. She sipped at her tea. "Well, I guess you better get started on packing up after breakfast." Her tone became very dismissive.

"Don't be like this," Owen said. This was the last thing that he wanted. He didn't want to leave New York on such a sour note. They had made such progress over the Christmas holidays.

"Don't be like what?" she said, sharply. The children looked up when they heard the sharpness in her voice. They could tell that Cristina was upset.

"Let's talk about it after breakfast," he said, looking at the two children staring at Cristina.

"Why? Won't you be packing? Besides, there is nothing to discuss. It has already been booked," Cristina said. She pushed her plate away. "I am not hungry, anymore." She picked up her cup of tea and went back to her room. He heard the click on her door, knowing that she had locked it.

Owen sighed, then smiled at the children.

"Is mommy mad?" Xander asked, his eyes questioning his father.

"Maybe a little bit but she will get over it," Owen said, trying to trivialize the situation for the children's sake. But he knew that it wasn't trivial. He couldn't leave New York with Cristina angry with him. It would undo everything that had happened over the past three days.

After breakfast, he supervised the children, as they brushed their teeth and he changed them out of their pajamas. He put on the television for them and left them, watching cartoons.

Hoping that he had given her enough time to cool down, he knocked on Cristina's bedroom door. "Cristina, it's me. Can you open the door?" There was silence on the other side of the door.

"Cristina," he called again. "Please talk to me. Let me in." Still, there was no reply.

"Okay, I am going to start packing. If you want to talk, come to my bedroom, please. I really don't want to leave New York with you in this mood," he said. He sighed again and headed to his room to pack his and Jordan's clothes. First, he put their dirty clothes in a laundry bag. He didn't even know they had so many dirty clothes. He should have washed them, last night, he thought but then again, he had been too busy pleasuring Cristina. The thought brought a smile to his face. Then, he remembered that she was now very mad at him.

He packed all of the toys that Jordan had got. He packed away the doll but he figured she could carry the bear with her through the airport. He neatly packed the clean clothes, then tried to force the laundry bag with all of the dirty clothes into the suitcase. It was not fitting well. He moved around the toys in an effort to squeeze the bag in.

"Maybe you should have washed the clothes and pack them, instead of trying to force that big bag into the suitcase," Cristina said, standing in the doorway.

"Cristina!" Owen said, grateful to hear her voice. "Come on in. You can close the door. We can talk." She did as she was told, softly closing the door.

"Where are the kids?" she asked.

"Watching cartoons," Owen said. "I hate to admit it but sometimes, the television is a good babysitter."

He sat on the bed and beckoned her to him. She came and stood between his legs. He took her hands into his. "I don't want to leave you like this." He hugged her and rested his head against the roundness of her stomach.

"Then, don't," she said. He looked up at her with enquiring eyes.

"What?" he asked.

"I want you to stay," she told him. "Maybe until New Year's Day. Stay for the rest of the holidays. You can leave then, if you have to."

He smiled. "You want me to stay?" he said.

"That's what I said, Owen," she replied. "Do you want me to beg?" He hugged her tightly. "Is that an answer?"

"Yes, yes, that's an answer," he said, looking up at her. "We will stay. I will have to call and make some arrangements at the hospital but yes, Jordan and I will stay until New Year's Day." He then rested his head against her stomach. Then, he felt it. A slight movement, it was.

She felt it, too. "I guess the baby wants you to stay,too." She ran her fingers through his hair and she stood there, locked in his embrace.

* * *

**A/N Please leave your thoughts and comments. Thanks for all of the reviews.**


	15. Chapter 15 The Baby's Sex

It was the day after New Year's and Owen was returning to work at the hospital. He had the biggest, brightest smile on his face. He had the best holidays a man could have. He had spent 10 wonderful days with his family. What more could a guy ask for?

He went to a conference room and there was a pile of folders awaiting him. His assistant had left them for him, since she knew which conference room he would be based at for that day. He groaned. Back to the grind, he thought. He relaxed in his chair and thought about the last few days.

After he had agreed to stay, the four of them had great fun together. They took the children ice-skating in Rockefeller Center where everyone fell down at one point or the other. They went to the movies to see an animated feature and Xander spoke to the characters on the screen, as if they were real. They went to a Broadway matinee and the children got up and danced in the aisles, when the music played. They went to a restaurant where the server told Owen that his family was beautiful. He had to agree.

On New Year's Eve, they were going to stay up and watch the ball drop on Times Square. Of course, they couldn't go down to the venue itself since they had two small children, who would probably suffer out there in the cold and the wind and would complain too much about being tired. So, they stayed at home and watched the entertainment on television with Ryan Seacrest. At first, the children tried to stay up but as their bedtimes approached, neither of them could keep their eyes open. Owen first carried Xander who had been sleeping on the floor. Jordan was proud that she could stay up longer than Xander but half an hour later, she too had nodded off to dreamland.

After he tucked her in, he and Cristina snuggled against each other on the sofa to watch the show. They both took intermittent naps because there was only so much either of them could watch. Owen opened to his eyes and checked the time, it was already 11.59 p.m. He gently shook Cristina awake.

"Wake up, Cristina, it's nearly time," he said. Cristina reluctantly opened her eyes. She yawned and straightened up. She also took a

"It's nearly time," she repeated. Her eyes took a little time to focus and then, she saw that the countdown had started on television. "Oh, my God."

They both started counting down with the crowds on Times Square. As the happy new year sign came on, they looked at each other and shared a passionate kiss.

"Happy New Year, Owen," she said.

"Happy New Year, Cristina," he said. "It is going to be a great new year. Our baby will be born this year. It is just going to be so amazing. I hope this is really the new start for us. All of us – those two little sleeping kids, you, me and Baby Hunt." He bent down and kissed Cristina's stomach. She raised his head and held his face in her hands and kissed him again.

"Do you want to spend the night in my bedroom?" she asked.

"Cristina," he said, trying to remind her about the promise about taking things slow. He wanted it to work out this time. There had been too many break-ups in their relationship. He didn't want that to ever happen again.

"I know what you're thinking but I just want us to sleep in the same bed. I mean literally sleep. Not the other thing," she told him. "Can we do that? I just want to feel your presence next to me."

"Yes, we can. I would like that," he said, as he switched off the television. He pulled her up from the couch and together, they went to her bedroom. As they got into bed, he wrapped his body, neatly cocooning her in his arms.

* * *

The next day, he woke up and found her still in his arms. He gently removed himself from her, as he got up. He was going to make breakfast that day, the last time he was going to do so for the holidays, since he and Jordan were leaving for Seattle later that day. He was busy at the stove, when he felt her arms around him. He took one of her hands and kissed it.

"So you're leaving me today?" she whispered.

"Not that I want to but duty and responsibility call," he said. "Take a seat at the table. I will bring you your breakfast in a bit."

"What about waking up the kids?" she asked.

"Not as yet, just want you and me alone together, with a nice cup of tea and some breakfast," he said. "Parents don't get much alone time with little kids around. We have to cherish it."

So, they did. They had their breakfast and their cups of tea, before little people started to invade the kitchen. As the children ate, Owen went to Betsy's bedroom and started to pack. He took out clothes for himself and Jordan to wear on the flight back to Seattle. He only had a few dirty clothes this time, so everything had fit nicely into the suitcases. He was starting to feel emotional. He knew that it would get worse when it was time to leave. And so it was, he held Cristina and Xander closely to him, when the doorman called up to say that his cab had arrived. The two children hugged each other, while Owen felt he could not release Cristina from his arms.

"You have to go," she said. He gently released her from his arms. He gave her a soft kiss on the lips. Then, he and Jordan left. In the taxi to the airport, Jordan let out a small cry.

"What's the matter, Jordan?" he asked, putting an arm around his small blonde daughter.

"I miss them already, daddy," she said, her tears starting to flow a little more.

"Me, too, Jordan. I miss them, too," he said.

As he sat there in the conference room, the emotions that he felt at that moment came back to him. But he was brought back to reality by a knock on the door of the conference. His assistant, Genevieve, stepped in.

"Dr. Hunt," she said, with a smile. "Welcome back. I trust that you had a wonderful holiday."

"Yes, Genevieve. The best ever. I got to spend it with my family," he said.

"That's good," she said. "I put all of the folders on the table. If you need anything else, I will be in my office. Oh, and Dr Russell told me to tell you that he hadn't found anything as yet. He said you would know what he meant."

"Yes, thank you, Genevieve," Owen said, as Genevieve closed the door and left. It was good that Russell was still taking an interest in finding a surgery for Cristina. He hoped the cardio head would be successful, soon because it would bring Cristina back to Seattle, at least for a little bit.

* * *

He and Cristina spoke to each other, every day. There was the time difference, so they had to carve out a time that was just for them. He still called every weekend on Skype, so Jordan and Xander could speak to each other. The conversation between the two children was much easier than before. Now that they knew each other, they could speak without fumbling and mumbling. Things were indeed going well for the Hunt-Yang family.

* * *

Owen looked at his time. It was nearly 1 p.m one day and she had been told that she would call him at that time. He knew she had a doctor's appointment that day and he expected her to call to show him the results of her latest ultrasound. He was waiting at his computer, when Dr. Russell came up to him. He was clearly very excited.

"I have it, Dr. Hunt. The perfect surgery for Dr. Yang. She can even demonstrate the Yang method," Dr. Russell said. He detailed as much as he could about the surgery. Then, he asked hopefully. "You think that she would go for this?"

"Yes, I do," Owen said. "I am going to speak to her in a bit. I will run it by her but I am sure it will pique her interest. Thank you very much."

"Sometimes, it is hard to believe that Dr. Yang was one of my surgical fellows," Dr. Russell said. "Now look at her. Shaking up the surgical world at every turn."

"That she does," Owen said, proudly. "She is that brilliant." Then, he heard the call coming through on his computer. "Will you please excuse me? It's her calling. I will tell her and get back to you, as soon as possible."

As Dr. Russell disappeared, he answered the call with the biggest smile on her face. "Hey, where are you?" he asked. She seemed to be lying down on an examination room bed. "Is something wrong?" he said, anxiously, as his voice was raised.

"No," she said. "I am at the doctor's office. I wanted you to be here for this special appointment. Say hi to my OB/GYN Dr. Douglas." Cristina turned her tablet to show the doctor's face.

"Hello, Dr. Douglas," Owen said. He gave the man a slight wave.

"Hello, Dr. Hunt. Today is a special day. We are going to find out the sex of your baby," Dr. Douglas said. Owen gasped. "She is about 20 weeks and we should be able to see the sexual organs on the sonogram."

Cristina turned back the tablet to her face. "Surprise!"

"That is an awesome surprise," he said. "I thought you were just going to show me another ultrasound picture."

"Nope, I want you to hear when I hear it," she said. "So shall we get started, Dr. Douglas?" Cristina turned the tablet so Owen could see what the doctor was doing. Then, she turned it to the ultrasound image.

"Can you see, Owen?" she asked, offscreen.

"Yes, I can," he said. He could clearly see the image of the baby on the screen. He could see the baby's head, arms and legs.

"Everything is looking fine for this stage of the pregnancy," Dr. Douglas said. "He or she is being a little shy. Just needs to move that leg a little bit and let me see. Be a dear and do it." It was as if the baby heard and moved its leg a little bit.

"Ah, there she is," the doctor said.

"What? It's a girl!" Cristina said. "Oooh, my little boy is going to be so disappointed. He wanted a baby brother."

Owen laughed. "Jordan is going to be happy. She wanted a sister," he said.

Cristina turned the tablet to her face. "Well, we knew that one of them was going to be unhappy. I am going to tell Xander that he is special since he is the only boy and I will take him out for a treat."

"You should do that. My boy will be so unhappy," Owen said. "But I am happy. I would have been happy, either way. I just wanted a healthy baby."

"Yeah, me too," she said. "I am going to turn this off, now."

"Hey, wait a minute. There is something I want to tell you," he said. "I have it. The perfect surgery for you. Perfect to demonstrate the Yang method. Dr. Russell brought it to my attention today."

"Surgery?" she repeated. Her ears perked up.

"Yes, you will love it," he said. "I will email you the details. If you think it is worth your while, I will start making arrangements. Okay, so bye."

"Bye, Owen," she said, as she broke contact on the call.

He lay back on his seat. He was going to have another daughter. Jordan would be so pleased. He gave his mother a call.

"Hey, mom. A little update on the baby. It is going to be a girl," Owen said.

"Lovely," she said. "I hope it gets Cristina's hair."

"You know I haven't even thought about that," Owen said. "That would be wonderful."

"So are there any moves for you to come together as a family?" Mrs. Hunt asked. "I haven't seen Cristina in years and now, she is having my granddaughter. I haven't even met my grandson in person. All I have seen is his picture. Come on, son. What's happening on that front? I am an old lady and I need my grandchildren."

"Oh, Mom," he said. There were still lots of issues to be worked out between him and Cristina but he knew that they had made tremendous progress since the Christmas holidays.

Then, he brightened. "I think there is a really great opportunity for you to meet your grandson," Owen said. "I am trying to entice Cristina to come to Seattle to perform a surgery. If I play my cards right, I am pretty sure I can get her here."

"Really, son?" Mrs. Hunt said. "I am getting so excited, now. I can finally meet Xander and maybe, Cristina will allow me to touch her belly. Maybe everyone can come over and have dinner at the house. I can even start thinking about the menu." She chuckled, loudly.

"Yes, mom," he said. "It is definitely going to happen. I promise you."

* * *

**A/N Please leave your thoughts and comments. I do appreciate them. Thank you very much.**


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